There has been an almost 30% increase in the detection of scams and unlicensed activities, said the Securities Commission (SC) in the latest annual report 2022 news conference. This increase has been attributed to the dedicated team conducting surveillance, not forgetting the greater scrutiny and assessment of risks of the Malaysian capital market, which included the publication of the inaugural Capital Market Stability Review.
A total of 442 matters had been reviewed and assessed as well as complaints relating to 277 public listed companies that resulted in, amongst others, engagement with public listed companies, audit firms and potential enforcement action.
The SC intensified supervisory monitoring efforts over Bursa Malaysia’s clearing function through frequent engagement and robust challenge processes. Gaps were identified and closed via six thematic regulatory assessments carried out on equity crowdfunding and peer-to-peer financing operators.
Good culture and conduct were inculcated as well as a swift intervention to address non-compliance. These were done through 41 pre-emptive assessments and 87 forcause assessments. Then there is the issuance of surveys on remuneration practices and AOB’s thematic review of audit firm culture.
The SC said in-house data analytics tools were further developed to enhance the analysis of voluminous trade data leading to more efficient identification of trading patterns and behaviour.
Data analytics are extended to audit to identify areas of concern, with the number of audit firms inspected being increased by 50%.
On another note, the SC assessed the tech readiness of 110 intermediaries through cyber simulations and increased cyber awareness amongst 200 entities with the inaugural Capital Market Cyber Incident Tabletop Exercise.
Also, communication on cyber threats to the industry had been improved and the best practices were instilled to manage cyber security incidents. The SC through a public consultation paper consulted the industry on proposed regulatory framework for Technology Risk Management.
Regulatory submission and processes were further enhanced. Greater operational efficiency was achieved through the launch of the Electronic Application System (EASy) which enabled new online applications and instantaneous updates.
Enforcement effectiveness was also improved by introducing a fully automated case management system. Expanding on this, online payment accessibility has been widened to industry-facing systems through a centralised payment gateway.
