MOF to strengthen business ecosystem in 2 areas

These are the corporate government regime and efficiency of processes.

Minister of Finance (MOF) Indranee Rajah said the government will be strengthening the business ecosystem in Singapore in two areas: corporate government regime and efficiency of processes.

In her speech at the Committee of Supply Debate 2022, Rajah said the MOF is working towards positioning Singapore for future shits and further establishing it as a “trusted, open, and effective business hub.”

In the area of corporate governance regime, Rajah said the MOF will be aligning Singapore with  “international standards such as those under the inter-government Financial Action Task Force.”

One way the government has done this was through the passing of the Corporate Registers (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill which is aimed at strengthening the state’s regime on “the transparency and beneficial ownership of companies and Limited Liability Partnerships.”

Rajah added that the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) is also studying proposals to further enhance Singapore’s anti-money laundering regime.

“ACRA is pivoting towards more risk-targeted supervision for the Registered Filing Agents sector by using data analytics to identify higher-risk agents,” she said.

Apart from combatting money laundering, Rajah said MOF is also working to position Singapore as a global Intellectual Property and fund management hub.

On improving processes, Rajah said the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) has introduced Accounting Software Register Plus to speed up tax filing, and PayNow for Corporate Income Tax refunds to hasten payments.

Rajah said IRAS has been working with developers and other agencies to “develop solutions to help businesses meet their tax and other regulatory requirements."

Lastly, IRAS has also digitised banker’s guarantees for traders through the Networked Trade Platform.