CORPORATE AND COMMERCIAL
Dewan Negara passes the Companies Bill 2015
On 29 April 2016, the Dewan Negara passed the Companies Bill 2015. This followed the passing of the said Bill by the Dewan Rakyat on 4 April 2016.
The Companies Bill 2015, which will replace the Companies Act 1965 once it comes into force, is a widely anticipated piece of legislation. It has been heralded as the biggest reform to the legal framework governing Malaysian companies in recent years and has been drafted to address various matters ranging from simplifying the incorporation process to the winding up process of a company.
The Companies Bill 2015 is now awaiting Royal Assent before it is gazetted and the date on which it will come into operation will be known then. The Companies Bill 2015 can be accessed here.
For further information regarding corporate and commercial law matters, please contact
Grace C G Yeoh
gcgyeoh@shearndelamore.com
Lorraine Cheah
l_cheah@shearndelamore.com
DISPUTE RESOLUTION
Hap Seng Plantations (River Estates) Sdn Bhd v Excess Interpoint Sdn Bhd & Anor [2016] 4 CLJ 641
The Federal Court was asked whether the High Court in the State of Malaya is empowered in law to transfer a case filed before it to a High Court in the State of Sabah and Sarawak. The question was answered in the negative as the power to transfer any proceeding must be confined to transfer within a particular local jurisdiction and not between the two local jurisdictions.
For further information regarding dispute resolution matters, please contact
Datin Jeyanthini Kannaperan
jeyanthini@shearndelamore.com
Robert Lazar
rlazar@shearndelamore.com
FINANCIAL SERVICES
Awards for Sukuk Murabahah programme
The Financial Services team worked on the Islamic medium term notes ("Sukuk Murabahah") programme of RM1.5 billion in nominal value based on the Shariah principle of Murabahah (via a Tawarruq arrangement) by Country Garden Real Estate Sdn Bhd ("CGRE"), an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Country Garden Holdings Company Limited ("CGH") (listed on the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and China’s leading residential property developer with property development projects in China, Malaysia and Australia), and guaranteed by CGH and CGRE’s direct shareholders, Bright Start Group Limited and Top Favour Holdings Limited. The Sukuk Murabahah programme is the first Islamic debt issue undertaken by the CGH’s group of companies.
Shearn Delamore & Co acted for CIMB Investment Bank Berhad as Lead Arranger, Lead Manager and Facility Agent for the Sukuk Murabahah programme. The first issue under the Sukuk Murabahah programme took place on 30 December 2015.
The Sukuk Murabahah programme won:
- the Best Deal China for Asset Triple A Islamic Finance Awards 2016; and
- RAM’s Market Pioneer Award for first China-based guarantor for RM Sukuk programme.(The Market Pioneer Award honours the “firsts” and the visionaries which have recognised the advantages of the Malaysian bond and sukuk market as a viable source of funding, and which are expected to lead their peers in tapping the domestic debt market.)
Financial Markets Committee established on 13 May 2016.
Bank Negara Malaysia ("BNM") established the Financial Markets Committee on 13 May 2016. BNM states that the Committee is established with the objective of broadening industry engagement with a focus in reviewing and formulating comprehensive strategies for the wholesale financial markets to meet the diverse and complex demands of a more developed and internationally integrated economy.
The Committee shall consist of participants/representatives from BNM, financial institutions, corporations, financial service providers and others who have prominent roles or participations in the financial markets. The Committee also aims to provide a senior-level forum for market participants to meet regularly to discuss matters and potential issues and risk relating to the development of the Malaysian financial market.
For further information regarding financial services matters, please contact
Christina S C Kow
christina@shearndelamore.com
Pamela Kung Chin Woon
pamela@shearndelamore.com
TAX AND REVENUE
INCOME TAX
The Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia has recently issued two new public rulings on:
- Venture Capital Tax Incentives (Public Ruling No 2/2016) — issued on 9 May 2016; and
- Tax Treatment On Interest Income Received By A Person Carrying On A Business (Public Ruling No 3/2016) — issued on 16 May 2016.
GOODS AND SERVICES TAX (GST)
The revised versions of the following Specific Guides have recently been published on the Royal Malaysian Customs Department’s (RMCD’s) GST website:
- Import (revised as at 12 May 2016);
- Supply (revised as at 24 May 2016); and
- Transfer of Business as a Going Concern (revised as at 24 May 2016).
Further, the RMCD has also published a new Industry Guide on Investment Precious Metals (as at 19 May 2016) on its GST website.
For further information regarding tax and revenue law matters, please contact
Goh Ka Im
kgoh@shearndelamore.com
Anand Raj
anand@shearndelamore.com
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