By VG Cabuag
THE Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Thursday said the Philippine regulator has assumed the chairmanship of the Asean Capital Markets Forum (ACMF).
The ACMF, specifically its Working Group D, is responsible for the Asean corporate governance initiative, comprising the Asean Corporate Governance Scorecard (ACGS) and the ranking of Asean publicly listed companies (PLCs), which is one of the several regional initiatives of the ACMF.
SEC Chairman Teresita Herbosa said prior to taking the helm of the working group, the SEC already actively promoted the ACGS initiative to locally listed companies.
In the first half of 2015, SEC conducted a series of discussions on the ACGS, believed to have contributed greatly to the increased scores of PLCs, leading to the inclusion of 11 companies in the top 50 Asean PLCs.
The ACGS and the consequent ranking of Asean PLCs were the basis for the recognition of the top 50 Asean PLCs.
In 2015 11 corporations from the Philippines were included in the top 50 Asean PLCs. These were Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc., Ayala Corp., Ayala Land Inc., BDO Unibank Inc., Globe Telecom Inc., GT Capital Holdings Inc., Manila Electric Co., Manila Water Co. Inc., Philex Mining Corp., Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. and SM Prime Holdings Inc.
“With its chairmanship, the Philippine SEC is tasked with steering the CG [corporate governance] initiative to the next phase, beginning with a holistic review of the ACGS and coordination with CG experts and senior regulators from the other participating countries on all other relevant matters and work programs that would further promote and strengthen corporate governance within the region,” the SEC said.
Securities Commission Malaysia turned over to the Philippine SEC the chairmanship of the ACMF Corporate Governance Initiative during the recently concluded inaugural Asean Corporate Governance Conference and Awards at the Manila Polo Club, Makati City.