SC explores taskforce to strengthen company secretaries' competency

KUALA LUMPUR: The Securities Commission (SC) is exploring the formation of a multi-stakeholder taskforce to strengthen the competency and accountability of company secretaries at listed companies.

SC chairman Datuk Mohammad Faiz Azmi said the taskforce would bring together regulators and professionals to develop a standardised competency framework reflecting the evolving role of company secretaries.

The initiative follows feedback gathered during the SC's consultations on the revised Malaysian Code on Corporate Governance (MCCG) 2026, which will be issued this year.

"Throughout our consultations with stakeholders for MCCG 2026, there was a lot of discussion about the role of one group of governance professionals — the company secretaries," he said at the CGI Global Governance Summit 2026 here today.

Faiz said company secretaries were no longer expected merely to ensure legal compliance and maintain corporate records.

Their role had become increasingly multifaceted, including acting as trusted advisers, facilitating effective board decision-making and providing a critical and constructive internal voice.

He said company secretaries could play an important role when boards faced situations where the most convenient course of action might not necessarily be the best one.

"There may even be times when asking the right question matters more than having the correct answer," he said.

Faiz said informed decisions should take into account both positive and negative views, placing company secretaries in an important position to help ensure boards did the right thing in the right way.

"As expectations of the boards increase, the role of governance professionals must also evolve," he said.

He said feedback from the SC's consultations had highlighted the need to further strengthen the competence, capabilities and professionalism of company secretaries.

While the role was regulated, Faiz said competency standards for company secretaries were not consistently applied.

The SC was also working with Bursa Malaysia on the regulatory framework governing company secretaries of listed companies, including fit and proper requirements and accountability.

Faiz said the efforts formed part of a broader push to strengthen Malaysia's corporate governance ecosystem as companies faced growing complexity from technological disruption, artificial intelligence, evolving sustainability expectations, geopolitical uncertainty and increasingly demanding stakeholders.

He said good governance was not simply the product of a single framework, institution or individual, but required a collaborative ecosystem that prioritised trust, accountability and sustainable value creation.

"Fundamentally, it is about having the values that you hold and the courage to make the right decisions.

"In the end, meaningful outcomes depend on the judgement, integrity and actions of those entrusted to make it work," he said.