CAG for making non-listed companies code-compliant

Corporate governance

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FE Team | Published: August 29, 2018 22:40:09

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FE Report
All the non-listed companies should mandatorily be brought under the Corporate Governance Code, the comptroller and auditor general (CAG) has said.
Such a policy will ensure better corporate governance in every spectrum and also help protect the consumer interests, Mohammad Muslim Chowdhury stated.
The CAG made the observations at a seminar on 'Corporate governance code' held in Dhaka on Tuesday.
The Institute of Internal Auditors, Bangladesh (IIAB) organised the event.
The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) renamed Corporate Governance Guideline (CGG) as Corporate Governance Code and reissued it this June.
The new code will come into effect from December 31.
As stipulated, only listed companies are bound to comply with the governance code.
However, the new code is also 'applicable' for all the state-owned and corporate entities.
Mr Chowdhury said, "Listed companies currently form a meagre portion of the total market capitalisation in Bangladesh."
"In this context, it's important to make Corporate Governance Code mandatory for non-listed companies also to ensure better corporate governance," he added.
It is to be noted that the BSEC issued a CGG in 2006 on a comply-or-explain basis for listed companies.
Subsequently, the BSEC revised and reissued the CGG in 2012 on a comply basis.
Speaking on the occasion, BSEC commissioner Swapan Kumar Bala said the new code tried to combine both rule-based and principle-based approaches.
"Good corporate governance structures protect a company from reputational damage and mitigate risk well in advance," said IIAB president Atique Rabbani.
Internal auditing is also important because it saves resources before spending, speakers told the seminar.
IIAB general secretary M Nurul Alam presented a keynote paper at the programme.
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