British American Tobacco - Our corporate governance

We regard robust corporate governance a key element underpinning the sustainable, long-term growth of our business. 

These principles are reflected in our Standards of Business Conduct, which demonstrate our commitment to good corporate behaviour. They have been in place for many years, and are regularly revised to ensure that they remain at the forefront of best business practice.Every Group company and all of our staff worldwide are expected to live up to them.

In 2023, 100% of Group employees completed our Standards of Business Conduct training and compliance sign-off procedure, during which they completed training and assessment, affirmed their commitment to the SoBC and declared any new or existing personal conflicts of interest.

In addition, our Statement of Business Principles is designed to reflect the expectations of our stakeholders that we operate our business responsibly.
 

Sustainability Governance

The evolution of, and attention to, sustainability and ESG matters have increased in recent years. Regulations and expectations have substantially broadened and deepened, not least because of the challenges associated with climate change and biodiversity loss which the world faces.

Having appropriate governance in place to deliver on our sustainability commitments is more important than ever before. This is why we believe effective oversight and management of sustainability-related risks and opportunities are essential to BAT’s ability to deliver A Better Tomorrow™ and achieve long-term sustainable growth.

Read more in our Combined Annual and ESG Report.
 

Our approach to corporate taxation

Our approach to corporate taxation sets out our position in relation to corporate tax risk and governance, working with tax authorities, tax planning and Group locations. This supplements the Group’s tax strategy, published as part of our Combined Annual and ESG Report.

BAT’s approach to corporate taxation (107 kb) 
 

UK Corporate Governance Code

The principal governance rules applying to British American Tobacco p.l.c. (the ‘Company’) are contained in the UK Corporate Governance Code (the “Code”), which can be found on the Financial Reporting Council's website. As required by the Code, the Corporate Governance Statement in our Combined Annual and ESG Report describes how we apply its Principles and provides our formal report on compliance with its Provisions.

In the interests of transparency, we prepare a report annually summarising our approach to corporate governance by reference to each Principle and Provision of the Code.

Report on compliance with the UK Corporate Governance Code (377 kb) 
 

UK and US corporate governance

In addition to being listed on the London Stock Exchange and the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, the Company’s ordinary shares in the form of American depositary shares (ADSs) are listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and are registered under the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

In addition to its obligations under the UK Corporate Governance Code, the Company is a foreign private issuer under US securities laws and is subject to certain US securities laws and regulations, including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, and the NYSE listing rules. The Company is required to publicly file with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) an annual report on Form 20-F and furnish to the SEC current reports on Form 6-K.  As a foreign private issuer listed on the NYSE, the Company is also required to submit semi-annual financial statements on Form 6-K to the SEC.

The Company previously had unlisted trading privileges for its ADSs on NYSE American (formerly known as NYSE MKT).
 

Our contact information

Registered Office
Globe House
4 Temple Place
London WC2R 2PG
United Kingdom
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7845 1000
Fax: +44 (0) 20 7240 0555

Company Secretary
Caroline Ferland