Experts have called for urgent reforms to the Companies Act 1994, stressing the need to update and modernize the legislation to reflect the evolving business environment, technological advancements, and global best practices.
The experts came up with the recommendation at a workshop on 'Importance of Board Meeting, AGM, EGM and Compliance of Limited Companies' held at DCCI auditorium on Saturday, according to a media release.
The workshop was organised by Dhaka Chamber of Commerce & Industry (DCCI) where Registrar (Additional Secretary) of Joint Stock Companies and Firms (RJSC) AKM Nurunnabi Kabir was present as the chief guest.
DCCI President Taskeen Ahmed in his opening remarks said the importance of institutional transparency, accountability and good governance in the management of limited companies is increasing with the economic progress of Bangladesh and the development of the industrial sector.
He also pointed out that in many cases many entrepreneurs or company professionals get confused due to lack of clear understanding of the complexities of company law, constitution or compliance issues.
The DCCI president said that the workshop provided a detailed understanding of the importance of board meetings, annual general meetings, extraordinary general meetings, procedures for timely and proper completion of meetings, strategies for maintaining necessary compliance under the Companies Act, and maintaining good relations with the regulatory bodies.
Registrar (Additional Secretary) of Joint Stock Companies and Firms AKM Nurunnabi Kabir said that at present, about 2 lakh 75 thousand business enterprises of Bangladesh are registered with RJSC and almost all the processes of company registration are now available online except the share transfer system. But soon, the RJSC has a plan to incorporate this service online after necessary security observations.
To run a business, he suggested that we comply with all rules and regulations to avoid unexpected incidents.
He also suggested the business owners train their professionals regarding different procedures of Companies Act, Articles of Association, Securities Law, and other related laws.
Mohammed Sanaullah, CEO & Lead Consultant of Sanaullah & Associates and Partner of Artisan, Chartered Accountant, Md. Selim Reza, FCA presented two separate keynote papers.
They said either the company is public limited or private limited or proprietorship, every category of businesses should be in compliance with laws and regulations.
They also said that the economy of Bangladesh is expanding day by day with the help of businessmen. In this era of globalization, to compete in the international market, maintaining compliance in business is a must now, they added.
They also said that complying with rules will help to stop all malpractices and misuse. They also said that the Companies Act of Bangladesh should be reformed as it is backdated now.
DCCI Senior Vice President Razeev H Chowdhury and Vice President Md. Salem Sulaiman were also present.