ISLAMABAD: The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) on Wednesday held a two-day interactive awareness session for Registrars deputed in the various Companies Registration Offices on recently promulgated Companies Ordinance, 2016.
The new ordinance was discussed at length especially in light of the comments received from the stakeholders and practical difficulties being faced by the CRO’s with respect to smooth implementation of the ordinance.
While referring to critical remarks coming from some quarters, SECP Chairman Zafar Hijazi said, “We recognise any fair criticism in respect of maintaining Companies’ Global Register of Beneficial Ownership especially with regards to foreign companies. He said that as the ordinance is being considered by National Assembly Standing Committee on Finance, the SECP will put all such points raised about the ordinance before the committee in order to reach an appropriate solution.
It was acknowledged that positive feedback has been received by the CRO’s from the corporate sector and experts as overall emphasis of the ordinance is on promoting ease of doing business in the country. Requirements of filing and registration have been simplified with a proactive thrust towards automation, ie e-filing which has particularly made life simpler for companies especially single-member companies and companies with small capital.
The matters relating to audit and financial reporting have been streamlined with the International Standards on Auditing and International Financial Reporting Standards which has been welcomed by the majority of companies and the chartered accountant firms. Moreover, additional disclosure requirements have been identified to promote greater corporate transparency.
The SECP chairman said that the new ordinance has put extra responsibilities on the commission to tackle issues of corporate fraud surfaced during recent past, investigate issues with the help of professionals and avoid overreaction by other law enforcing agencies in investigations which is counterproductive for the development of corporate and financial sector.
