Securities / Derivatives

China Extends Income Tax Exemptions for Stock Connect Participants

05/12/2019

Mainland investors’ profits made through Stock Connect and the MRF scheme will be exempt from income tax until 31 December 2022.

Securities / Derivatives

Hong Kong SFC Waives Licensing Fees Amid ‘Challenging’ Environment

05/12/2019

The decision was made to relieve the regulatory cost burden on the securities and futures industry, taking into account the “current challenging market environment”.

AML / KYC

New Zealand Police Releases AML/CTF Assessment

04/12/2019

NZ Police assessment identified trusts as attractive money laundering vehicles given government plans to exclude them from strengthened beneficial ownership disclosure regime

ESG / Sustainability

Japanese Pension Fund Moves Against Short Sellers

04/12/2019

Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund, the world’s largest, said it will no longer allow overseas shares to be lent out from its global equity portfolio.

ESG / Sustainability

Almost All SGX Companies Produce Sustainability Reports Since Mandate

04/12/2019

99.8% of SGX listed companies have produced sustainability reports, according to a joint review conducted by SGX RegCo and the Centre for Governance, Institutions and Organisations.

Market Infrastructure

FMSB Drafts Good Practice Statement on Sovereign Bond Auctions

04/12/2019

The Statement of Good Practice seeks to identify some of the key conflicts of interest that can arise in sovereign and supranational auctions, and to set out measures to enhance market transparency.

AML / KYC

Citi Sent 99pc of Westpac Transfers That Breached AUSTRAC Requirements

04/12/2019

Citi is not under investigation, though AUSTRAC has criticised the bank for not providing sufficient information about the payments and the source of funds.

Enforcement

Major Indian Bourses Suspend Karvy Trading Licences

04/12/2019

BSE, NSE, MCX, MSEI suspend Karvy Stock Broking; NSDL returns to 90% of clients the securities that were illegally pledged at lenders by Karvy.

Indonesia Mulls New Singapore-Style Sovereign Wealth Fund

04/12/2019

According to reports, the proposal is backed by three ministries and seeks to ensure greater support for local technology startups and overly indebted SMEs.