Hargreaves Lansdown has launched a digital voting service to enable more of its customers to participate as active shareholders.
The new service will allow shareholders to vote and attend meetings virtually, such as annual general meetings relating to their shareholdings via their HL account.
This replaces the current system, which had a combination of phone calls to HL's help desk, webchats and emails.
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It will be available for all eligible UK and EU shareholders on its platform.
The votes will be counted per account, meaning that if a shareholder holds the same portfolio in in ISA, SIPP and Fund and Share Account, for example, three separate votes can be placed.
In a statement, HL said this will allow shareholders to "more and easily" vote on their holdings.
Tom Lee, head of trading proposition at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "Retail investors are taking a keener interest in having the power to influence corporations on important issues such as board diversity, climate change and sustainability.
"Providing a new digital capability for this self-service system gives retail investors a greater say in the governance of the companies in which they hold shares and the democratisation of markets."
He said this was one of a "number of developments" the platform is working on to help its customers "engage with, and defend, their investment".
The proxy voting service is being provided via a partnership with Broadridge, which already runs a similar service for rival platform Fidelity International.
AJ Bell and interactive investor already offer online voting for shareholders.
Demi Derem, general manager of International Investor Communication Solutions at Broadridge, said: "Retail investor ESG requirements have changed. Having a say in how the companies they invest in operate has become a big deal.
"Subsequently shareholder voting functionality has never been more important."
