Singapore’s financial watchdog is calling for asset managers to ramp up pressure and scrutiny on environmental, social and corporate governance issues in their portfolio companies.
“We encourage institutional investors to take the lead in exercising responsible investor stewardship,” Monetary Authority of Singapore Deputy Managing Director Ho Hern Shin said at a corporate governance conference Monday. This can be done through active engagement with companies and proxy voting, she added.
Singapore has seen a spate of corporate governance scandals in recent years. Authorities issued commodity trader Noble Group Ltd. a record fine in August for inflating reported profits and net assets in its financial statements, after a 45-month probe. Another high-profile case involving water-treatment company Hyflux Ltd. is still under investigation.
“Regulators need to step up too, not just calling on institutional investors to do so although that’s also important,” said Professor Mak Yuen Teen, who does corporate governance research at the National University of Singapore.
On pay transparency, Ho added it was “concerning” that most listed companies don’t disclose exactly how much their chief executive officers and directors are paid, despite rules requiring this. For directors’ pay, only 35% of companies comply, she said, while for CEOs, it’s just 18%. Most companies report compensation within broad pay ranges, she said.
“Investors need to exercise their rights responsibly by taking keen interest in resolutions put to shareholders,” Ho said. “They should also monitor the governance and performance of the company, by asking good questions.”
