The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said over the weekend it would review the timetable for the implementation of the proposed revised fees and charges after it met with various business groups.
SEC commissioner McJill Bryant Fernandez told reporters Friday the new timeline for the implementation of the higher fees would still be approved by the corporate regulator.
Fernandez said there was no discussion on specific revisions of the proposed rules during the meeting with the business groups, contrary to a previous statement.
“There will still be a revised schedule of fees and charge, but the issuance of revised fees and charges is still in the pipeline,” Fernandez said.
Fernandez said the SEC’s meeting with the leaders of business groups was “very positive” in terms of moving forward on proposed fees and charges.
The SEC said it would also coordinate with Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA) on the topic. The agency issued the draft rules on the proposed charges and fees for public comment in July.
Some 11 business groups issued a statement in October to strongly oppose the proposed increases in regulatory fees and charges, describing it as money-making schemes in the guise of regulatory enhancements.
The SEC proposed to charge corporate issuers one-fourth of 1 percent of total indebtedness when creating bonded indebtedness.
It also proposed to impose a fee on the total transactions cleared and settled in the previous year by the Securities Clearing Corporation of the Philippines (SCCP) and Philippine Depository Trust Corporation (PDTC) in the amount of 0.1 basis point and 0.05 basis point, respectively.
The groups said the increased cost of doing business would hurt small and medium enterprises (SMEs) covered by the SEC.
The SEC extended its amnesty program until the end of 2023 to give non-compliant and suspended or revoked corporations a last chance to avail of lower fines and penalties.