The Implementation of the “Women on Boards” Directive Under the Supervision of the AMF

In this article for Finascope, Muriel Goldberg-Darmon, Guillaume Guérin, and Pierre Wolman discuss the recent transposition of the EU “Women on Boards” directive into French law and the designation of the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) as the authority responsible for monitoring gender balance requirements among directors of listed companies.

Starting in January 2026, affected companies must include gender balance disclosures in their governance reports, publish relevant data online, and ensure transparent selection processes where imbalances exist. From January 2027, these rules will also extend to board seats held by employee-elected directors.

The authors underscore the directive's broader objective of advancing corporate governance transparency and gender equality, noting that as of early 2025, women held nearly 47.7% of CAC 40 board seats and 46.6% in the SBF 120—exceeding the legal minimum of 40%, which underlines the importance of gender diversity for investors, particularly in terms of its impact on company performance.