28 December, 2020
This article reviews a recent webinar held by The Hong Kong Institute of Chartered Secretaries (the Institute) exploring the implications of the shift away from shareholder primacy as an underpinning philosophy of corporate governance. In August 2019, the Business...
28 December, 2020
This first part of the Champion Paper of the latest Corporate Governance Paper Competition held by The Hong Kong Institute of Chartered Secretaries (the Institute) provides a cost-benefit analysis of environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting. Gone are the...
28 December, 2020
Jeremy Birch, Hannah Cassidy and Kyle Wombolt, Herbert Smith Freehills, warn that the private sector is at risk of failing to prioritise modernising compliance and investigations functions just as regulators become increasingly technologically sophisticated....
28 December, 2020
Hoi Tak Leung, Counsel, Digital Economy, and Patrick Phua, Practice Head, Asia Global Loans and Global Markets, Ashurst, outline some key points of the first draft of the Mainland’s Personal Information Protection Law. On 21 October 2020, the National People’s...
28 December, 2020
Xavier Garralda, Associate, Vistra Hong Kong; and Effie Vasilopoulos, Partner, and David Kalani Lee, Counsel, Sidley Austin, highlight the features of Hong Kong’s new Limited Partnership Fund Ordinance designed to boost Hong Kong’s standing as an asset management and...
28 December, 2020
What is your role as a governance professional? ‘I am the Corporation Secretary of The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Ltd and Regional Head of Corporate Governance for HSBC in Asia-Pacific.’ What was your career path to your current role? ‘I joined a...
28 December, 2020
What is your role as a governance professional? ‘As an educator, I guess my role is like a time traveller, bridging the past and the present and taking the present into the future. Please allow me to explain. What is knowledge, and in this particular context, business...
28 December, 2020
Back to basics – Reframing corporate purpose Click here or on the cover image below to view or download a pdf of the full...
24 November, 2020
The Hong Kong Institute of Chartered Secretaries’ 12th biennial Corporate Governance Conference, held in hybrid mode on 25 and 26 September 2020, addressed one of the toughest and most critically important concerns for governance professionals – how to build and...
24 November, 2020
This second part of our review of the 12th biennial Corporate Governance Conference of The Hong Kong Institute of Chartered Secretaries highlights how boards can help organisations navigate the immediate and long-term challenges of a time of unprecedented change. The...
24 November, 2020
Chen Liping, Executive Director and General Manager of CSSC Offshore & Marine Engineering (Group) Company Ltd, offers an interesting perspective on the role of the board secretary based on his own experience transitioning from financial management to governance....
24 November, 2020
Vivian Chow, Principal of Risk Advisory, BDO, examines the latest guidance on long suspension of listed companies, delisting framework and resumption conditions, and provides practical advice for issuers seeking a resumption of trading. Listing suspension serves to...
24 November, 2020
New additions to the guidance note series of The Hong Kong Institute of Chartered Secretaries highlight the implications of the current COVID-19 pandemic for the work of governance professionals. It is hard to think of any areas of the work and personal lives of...
24 November, 2020
What is your role as a governance professional? ‘I am now working in the legal and compliance department of the Hong Kong branch of a Chinese bank which is listed in Shanghai and Hong Kong. I am a rules and regulations promoter and guardian to assist the bank’s senior...
24 November, 2020
What is your role as a governance professional? ‘I have been with ANTA Sports Products for almost six years. Since the company doesn’t have a company secretarial department, our investor relations (IR) department takes on some company secretarial duties. As Investor...
24 November, 2020
Board building – CGC 2020 review Click here or on the cover image below to view or download a pdf of the full...
27 October, 2020
What is your role as a governance professional? ‘Currently I am working as the Corporate Secretary of Livi Bank Ltd, one of Hong Kong’s new digital banks awarded its licence by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority in 2019. I joined in February 2020. I am helping to...
27 October, 2020
Four board secretaries share their work experience in diverse areas such as cross-border compliance, capital market operations, information disclosure and communication with foreign institutional investors, as well as their views on the changing perceptions of board...
27 October, 2020
Kenneth Jiang FCIS FCS(PE), Chief Representative of the Institute’s Beijing Representative Office, gives an update on the work of the Institute in the Mainland in fiscal 2020. Fiscal 2020 has been an extraordinary year for The Hong Kong Institute of Chartered...
27 October, 2020
Dr Gao Wei FCIS FCS(PE), Vice-President, The Hong Kong Institute of Chartered Secretaries, reviews the Institute’s work promoting good governance and facilitating cross-border compliance in Hong Kong and the Mainland. As a leading international corporate governance...
27 October, 2020
Special Mainland edition Click here or on the cover image below to view or download a pdf of the full...
24 September, 2020
Governance professionals in Hong Kong share some tips on how organisations can build the necessary governance culture and internal controls to guard against data privacy risks. The legislative and regulatory landscape for data privacy is changing fast. The...
24 September, 2020
Stephen Kai-yi Wong completed his tenure as Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data, Hong Kong, China (Privacy Commissioner) on 3 August this year. CSj talks to him about the changes he has seen in the privacy protection landscape in Hong Kong over his five-year term...
24 September, 2020
Sharan Gill, writer, lawyer and contributor to CSj, reviews a paper published earlier this year by the Thought Leadership Committee of The Chartered Governance Institute, which looks at one of the most debated and controversial areas in governance – the accountability...
24 September, 2020
Donald Lai ACIS ACS, Solicitor, CPA, argues that there is a need for more clarity on employees’ rights and obligations during search operations of residential premises conducted by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC). During the current COVID-19 pandemic,...
24 September, 2020
Against the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic in Hong Kong, Keoy Soo Khim, Angela Law and Kelly Tan, Withers, offer a timely reminder to directors of their duties and liabilities when companies are insolvent or nearing insolvency. No one expected that the culprit...
24 September, 2020
Sherman Yan, Managing Partner and Head of Litigation and Dispute Resolution, ONC Lawyers, reviews a recent Court of First Instance ruling that sends a clear message about the fiduciary duties of non-executive directors and independent non-executive directors. In the...
24 September, 2020
What is your role as a governance professional? ‘I am the Group General Counsel and Company Secretary for CLP Holdings Ltd, where I lead a team of professionals from various disciplines across legal, insurance, governance and sustainability. I am also a current...
24 September, 2020
Data privacy risk – The role of governance professionals Click here or on the cover image below to view or download a pdf of the full edition....
24 August, 2020
CSj gets some best-practice advice from investors, regulators and governance professionals in Hong Kong on how to improve diversity on boards and deliver real change. Earlier this month, a Qualcomm shareholder sued the company’s directors for failing to bring an...
24 August, 2020
Neil Waters and Karoline Vinsrygg, Egon Zehnder, highlight the results of a recent poll of chairs and board members to find out how boards are responding to the COVID-19 crisis. Like everyone and everything else, boards have had to adapt to a changed world in so many...
24 August, 2020
CSj looks at the latest proposals for implementing a paperless securities market in Hong Kong. On 28 January 2019, the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd (HKEX) and the Federation of Share Registrars Ltd (FSR) issued a joint...
24 August, 2020
Angela SY Yim, Partner, and Phoebe MC Fok, Senior Associate, Mayer Brown, evaluate recent amendments to health and safety regulations in Hong Kong, and suggest a number of practical measures to prioritise workplace safety. Amendments to the Hong Kong Exchanges and...
24 August, 2020
Henry Kwong, Tax Partner, Cheng & Cheng Taxation Services Ltd, analyses the latest Inland Revenue Department guidance on offshore fund exemptions for Hong Kong–domiciled funds. On 30 June 2020, the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) published its long-awaited...
24 August, 2020
As the first cryptocurrency fund licensed by the Securities and Futures Commission is launched in Hong Kong, Richard Keady, Partner, and Henry Li, Associate, Dentons Hong Kong, give an overview of the regulatory regime applicable to such funds. Technology is changing...
24 August, 2020
What is your role as a governance professional? ‘As a company secretarial officer working for a listed company, my role is to ensure regulatory compliance within the listed company and its subsidiaries. I also assist in the holding of board meetings and annual general...
24 August, 2020
Board diversity Click here or on the cover image below to view or download a pdf of the full...
23 July, 2020
A central theme to emerge from the Institute’s 21st Annual Corporate and Regulatory Update (ACRU) webinar, held on 5 June, was that regulators in Hong Kong will increasingly be holding individual executives, board members and professional practitioners accountable for...
23 July, 2020
Corporate disclosure issues featured highly in the discussions at this year’s Annual Corporate and Regulatory Update (ACRU). This second part of our ACRU review looks at the insights into corporate disclosure offered by regulators and practitioners speaking at the...
23 July, 2020
This third and final part of our review of ACRU 2020 focuses on the insights shared at the forum regarding anti–money laundering and counter–terrorist financing (AML/CTF) compliance. Two years on from the implementation of Hong Kong’s new anti–money laundering and...
23 July, 2020
Carl Li, Senior Partner, AllBright Law Office, makes recommendations for meeting the compliance requirements of the social credit system, which is scheduled to become fully operational in the Mainland by the end of 2020. Corporate compliance is becoming increasingly...
23 July, 2020
Herbert Smith Freehills looks at a new report issued by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority on its review of self-assessments on bank culture made by 30 authorised institutions. On 22 May 2020, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) published a report on its review of...
23 July, 2020
Adelaide Luke, Partner and Howard Chan, Associate, Herbert Smith Freehills, consider the recent updates to the Hong Kong Competition Commission’s Leniency Policy and what they mean for companies that discover they have been involved in activities that infringe the...
23 July, 2020
In the second of this two-part series, Henry Kwong, Tax Partner, and Matthew Cheung, Tax Manager, Cheng & Cheng Taxation Services Ltd, assess the salient features of the anti-avoidance tax provisions, recently introduced as part of the PRC Individual Income Tax...
23 July, 2020
What is your role as a governance professional? ‘I provide oversight of all sorts of risks for several business lines within my bank. Risk management is a key component of governance, assisting the business to better identify and manage risks so as to accomplish...
23 July, 2020
ACRU 2020 review Click here or on the cover image below to view or download a pdf of the full...
19 June, 2020
As economies shift into intangibles as drivers of economic value, is the present global tax system fit for purpose? Dr Jag Kundi, a Hong Kong–based scholar-practitioner active in the FinTech space, looks at the role that blockchain can play in improving and upgrading...
19 June, 2020
Emma Newman, Head of Sales, Veridate, highlights the key factors corporate services providers should consider when seeking the right technology to assist with know your client and customer due diligence compliance. For people working across the finance industry and...
19 June, 2020
From cybersecurity breaches to natural disasters and worldwide pandemics, the impact of a crisis can be unpredictable. Andrew Carrick, VP Customer Success – Asia Pacific, Diligent, offers tips for board members, management teams and governance professionals on...
19 June, 2020
Hogan Lovells highlights how the Mainland’s new Personal Information Security Specification, which will come into force on 1 October 2020, raises the stakes for data protection in the Mainland. Less than two years after the implementation of the ‘GB/T 35273-2017...
19 June, 2020
Tim Parker and Abigail Liu, Barristers at Denis Chang’s Chambers, take an in-depth look at the legal ramifications of the non-performance of commercial contracts during the current coronavirus pandemic. The rapid spread of COVID-19 has developed into a global threat....
19 June, 2020
Debevoise & Plimpton looks at a recent Market Misconduct Tribunal decision concerning late disclosure of inside information and makes practical suggestions on steps listed companies can take to ensure compliance with Hong Kong’s inside information disclosure...
19 June, 2020
What is your role as a governance professional? ‘As a governance professional, I see my role as a builder, an implementer, an enforcer and an upgrader. As a builder, I spearhead the establishment of governance policies, procedures and practices (governance...
19 June, 2020
Digital readiness – In a time of uncertainty Click here or on the cover image below to view or download a pdf of the full...
20 May, 2020
Helping Chartered Secretaries and Chartered Governance Professionals keep up with frontier issues in governance is part of the remit of The Chartered Governance Institute (CGI). This article reviews two new papers from CGI’s Thought Leadership Committee that raise...
20 May, 2020
Since retiring two years ago, Richard Ho FCIS FCS, has embarked on a second career as an independent non-executive director (INED). He shares with CSj some essential lessons in how to make a success of the INED calling. Can you tell us about your personal background...
20 May, 2020
CSj highlights the recommendations of the latest guidance note issued by the Institute’s Public Governance Interest Group on how to arrange your AGM while complying with the social distancing regime now in place in Hong Kong. As the 2020 AGM season gets underway, high...
20 May, 2020
In this first part of a two-part series, Henry Kwong, Tax Partner, and Matthew Cheung, Tax Manager, Cheng & Cheng Taxation Services Ltd, examine the implications of recent amendments to the PRC Individual Income Tax law and regulations, focusing on the definition...
20 May, 2020
Vincent Chan, Counsel of Appleby (Hong Kong office), provides an overview of the recent updates on economic substance requirements and reporting obligations in Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands. Since October 2019, the date of my last article...
20 May, 2020
What is your role as a governance professional? ‘In my day job, I am MTR Corporation’s Legal & European Business Director with responsibility, on the governance side, for our legal, company secretarial and risk management functions. I am also currently President...
20 May, 2020
Debevoise & Plimpton looks at a recent High Court judgment that dismissed applications for judicial review of search warrants obtained by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) and of the SFC’s seizure and retention of digital devices pursuant to the search...
20 May, 2020
Thought leadership review Click here or on the cover image below to view or download a pdf of the full...
23 April, 2020
CSj gets advice on what it takes to make a career in the not-for-profit sector. Hong Kong has seen a tumultuous few months with an economy in recession, the ongoing social protests and the current COVID-19 outbreak. The impact on the not-for-profit (NFP) sector has...
23 April, 2020
The winner of The Hong Kong Institute of Chartered Secretaries (HKICS) Prize 2019, Edith Shih FCG(CS, CGP) FCS(CS, CGP)(PE) International President, The Chartered Governance Institute, and former HKICS President, looks at the road ahead for the profession under the...
23 April, 2020
The Hong Kong Institute of Chartered Secretaries Regional Board Secretary Panel (RBSP) Roundtable Meeting (RBSP Meeting), held on 16 January 2020 in Hong Kong, focused on new deregulatory changes relating to the notice period for convening general meetings of Mainland...
23 April, 2020
PH Chik, Solicitor and Legal Adviser to the Mainland China Technical Consultation Panel of The Hong Kong Institute of Chartered Secretaries (the Institute), completes his two-part article in CSj looking at the major similarities and differences between the inside...
23 April, 2020
Gabriela Kennedy, Partner, and Cheng Hau Yeo, Associate, Mayer Brown, offer legal strategies for addressing coronavirus phishing scams in Hong Kong. As COVID-19 spreads around the world, so are phishing scams or the infection of computer systems with malware through...
23 April, 2020
Barbara Chiu, Partner, and Nichole Hou, Counsel, King & Wood Mallesons, highlight the implications of a Court of Appeal judgment, recently affirmed by the Court of Final Appeal, regarding the burden and standard of proof required in Market Misconduct Tribunal...
23 April, 2020
Dear members, graduates, students and Affiliated Persons, In view of the challenges of COVID-19, and as a caring professional Institute, Council has decided to provide the following relief to show care and concern to all of you during these challenging times. Reduce...
23 April, 2020
Governance with purpose – working for not-for-profits Click here or on the cover image below to view or download a pdf of the full...
24 March, 2020
CSj gets advice on how governance professionals can help companies stay on the right side of Hong Kong’s legal and regulatory regime relevant to conflicts of interest. In November 2019, Hong Kong was treated to an object lesson in how not to go about managing...
24 March, 2020
Katherine Ng, Managing Director, Head of Policy and Secretariat Services, Listing Department, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd (HKEX), discusses the role that good governance plays in ensuring that companies survive and thrive for the long term. Can we start by...
24 March, 2020
Tim Lui Tim Leung SBS JP, Chairman of the Securities and Futures Commission, focused his Guest of Honour speech at The Hong Kong Institute of Chartered Secretaries Annual Dinner 2020 on the need for companies to adopt high governance standards to improve their...
24 March, 2020
Governance professionals are at the forefront of the many changes sweeping through the business environment globally and locally. In her speech at The Hong Kong Institute of Chartered Secretaries (the Institute) Annual Dinner 2020, Institute President Gillian Meller...
24 March, 2020
PH Chik, Solicitor and Legal Adviser to the Mainland China Technical Consultation Panel of The Hong Kong Institute of Chartered Secretaries (the Institute), launches a two-part article in CSj looking at the major similarities and differences between the inside...
24 March, 2020
EY tax and transfer pricing specialists Wilson Cheng, Martin Richter, Kenny Wei and Flora Chan précis the recent regulations on transfer pricing in Hong Kong, explain the required documentation and related exemption criteria, and suggest good practices to ensure...
24 March, 2020
Peter So, Partner, and Connie Ma, Associate, Deacons, look at a landmark Court of Final Appeal judgment that casts new light on the ‘reasonable grounds to believe’ test for money laundering offences. In the two important Court of Final Appeal (CFA) cases of HKSAR v...
24 March, 2020
Conflicts of interest – your best practice guide Click here or on the cover image below to view or download a pdf of the full...
24 February, 2020
Given the market turbulence in Hong Kong, is the timing right for Employee Share Ownership Plans (ESOPs)? ESOPs were first introduced by Peninsula Newspapers in the US in 1956. Since then, ESOPs have been regarded as one of the classic methods to invigorate businesses...
24 February, 2020
Mark Parsons, Partner, Hogan Lovells, Hong Kong, looks at new proposals for the reform of Hong Kong’s Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance. On Monday 20 January 2020, the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau (CMAB), jointly with the Privacy Commissioner for...
24 February, 2020
Last year Rory Herbert (GradCG) from the UK and Kate Yuen from Hong Kong were selected to participate in the London-Hong Kong Intern Exchange 2019. They talk to CSj, along with Edith Shih FCIS FCS(PE), International President, The Chartered Governance Institute, and...
24 February, 2020
Tony Wong, Founder, and Regina Tai, Senior Consultant, Alaya Consulting, discuss the findings of Alaya’s latest annual survey of the environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards of Hong Kong’s listed companies. Seven years after first implementing its ESG...
24 February, 2020
With tougher environmental, social and governance (ESG) disclosure requirements on the way for listed companies in Hong Kong, a new joint report by KPMG China, CLP Holdings Ltd (CLP) and The Hong Kong Institute of Chartered Secretaries (the Institute) provides...
24 February, 2020
ESG – a governance perspective Click here or on the cover image below to view or download a pdf of the full...
20 January, 2020
This month, the Chartered Governance Qualifying Programme replaces the International Qualifying Scheme as The Hong Kong Institute of Chartered Secretaries qualifying programme. CSj looks at the significance of this important milestone in the ongoing evolution of the...
20 January, 2020
Ricky Chu Man-kin IDS, Chairperson of Hong Kong’s Equal Opportunities Commission, states the case for proactively implementing corporate anti–sexual harassment policies, not only for the benefit of all personnel as human beings, but also for the company’s bottom line....
20 January, 2020
Colum Bancroft, Managing Director, AlixPartners, argues that companies should prepare for the increasing compliance risks resulting from the ever-changing regulatory environment and economic downturn. Hong Kong’s economy is in recession and is entering a period of...
20 January, 2020
Andrew Carrick, Vice-President, Customer Success, Diligent, highlights the findings of a new global report assessing directors’ views on stakeholders and society. Recently, more than 180 CEOs in the Business Roundtable amended the association’s Statement on the...
20 January, 2020
CSj highlights the latest additions to the Institute’s guidance note series, providing members with new guidance on non-governmental organisations, anti–bribery and corruption, competition law, and mergers and acquisitions. The Institute’s seven Interest Groups, set...
20 January, 2020
Jason Yau, Partner, IT Consulting & Audit and Assurance, RSM Hong Kong, maps out a series of concrete measures to help combat cyber risk, charting a course of action for company secretaries to confront cybersecurity exposure and comply with regulatory...
20 January, 2020
Reimagining the company secretary Click here or on the cover image below to view or download a pdf of the full...
