Taiwan

The Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering will conduct its mutual evaluation of Taiwan and its financial institutions from 5 November until 16 November.

Seven state-banks have raised fees for foreign remittances, saying the extra charges are needed to offset costs associated with upgrades to money laundering controls.

Brokers issuing ETNs must have a net worth exceeding $325mn and a capital adequacy ratio of at least 250%.

Continuous trading will enable real-time trading by matching orders immediately; existing call auction mechanism collects orders over five seconds before matching occurs.

The regulator is concerned the founding family holds undue influence at Fubon Financial Holdings and affiliates, compromising board of directors' autonomy.

'Line Bank' will be set up in partnership with up to five local partners to take deposits, provide loans, and sell mutual funds and insurance policies.

Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC will cooperate with a consortium of 20 banks to simplify the auditing process for public companies.

New rules to attract overseas companies to list in Taiwan include the removal of a profitability requirement and a shortening of the FSC’s listing application review process.

Crude oil futures started trading on 2 July following an agreement with ICE Futures Europe; contracts denominated in NTD are targeted towards retail investors.

Regulator does away with rules requiring Chinese investors to apply for QDII license to invest in foreign firms listed in Taiwan; foreign firms can also solicit Chinese investment through private placements, rights issues or stake transfer.