DFSA: Australia should take lead on governance in Asia

Australian regulators have been called upon to take a proactive stance on improving standards of corporate governance across the Asia-Pacific region.

The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) deputy chief executive Ian Johnston has stated that economies in China, Asia and the Middle East are "over-saved and under-invested" at present, with a pressing need for leadership, reports ALB Legal News.

Speaking at the annual Chartered Secretaries Association (CSA) conference in Sydney, he noted that many private companies in these regions are choosing to go public, but are unwilling to adopt appropriate disclosure standards to accompany this change.

"Wealth tends to be concentrated in government institutions and in some private institutions, so we have huge family companies with money locked up that's not really getting into the capital markets," he added.

As such, it could fall to the developed Australian financial services market, which has a much better-developed governance infrastructure, to step in and offer guidance, Mr Johnston said.

Earlier this year, the Australian Private Equity and Venture Capital Association moved to improve governance standards in the nation further through the launch of a new best practice code for the private equity sector.