SCA issues rule for institutional controls

08/05/2016 05:00 AST

The Board of Directors of Securities and Commodities Authorities (SCA) has issued resolution no (7) of 2016 concerning regulations for institutional controls and governance of public joint stock companies.

The new governance resolution combines a bundle of regulations in relation to the subject and implementation of the provisions of the Commercial Companies Law in addition to corporate governance which will make it easier for local and foreign companies and investors as they would now have to deal with a single piece of legislation.

The 55-article legislation, which has three chapters - institutional controls, corporate governance and general provisions - will take affect one day after being published in the official gazette.

Once issued, the new resolution will render null and void any resolution, circular or other regulations that contradict its provisions. Promulgated as per best international practices, the new legislation will contribute to sharpening the UAE’s competitive edge in a series of international indices, including the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Report.

SCA has made some changes last month to extend its scope to cover full financial planning services.

The SCA has made amendments to its regulations to enable licenced advisers in the country to offer clients a full financial planning service. The changes have created a clear difference between the agency’s scope and Insurance Authority. The amendment to the ‘Financial Consultation and Financial Analysis’ licence comes after ion with the industry players in the previous year.

Following the changes, the new definition of financial planning is “conducting comprehensive assessment of the current and future financial position of a person through the use of variables known in the present time in order to forecast the future cash flows to help the customer develop a detailed strategy or a financial plan associated with investment in securities, commodities or commodities contracts to achieve the customer’s financial goals”.

The Gulf Today