The majority of founders view the company secretarial services as they do gym memberships; spend money on it, never valued and silently feel guilty of it. Such attitude is costing them even more than they are aware. According to the Singapore law, all incorporated companies need to have a qualified company secretary within six months of incorporating the company. It is not a recommendation. There are no exemptions, grace periods and second chances in ACRA. But what is the role of a company secretary? Continue reading!
Rather a lot, it happens. They keep your statutory registers, make yearly returns on record, prepare board resolutions and AGM records, and ensure that your company is in tandem with the Companies Act. Late with a deadline and incur financial penalty. Repeat negligence and directors may be in self-liquidation. The effects are factual and they build up within a short period of time.
It is really worthwhile here. Company secretary is not any paper-filer. They serve as your control early-warning system. In the case of ACRA (and it does update its requirements on a regular basis) you do not want a person who is trying to get up to speed with you, but rather one who is already acquainted with what is required.
Most of the lean business owners strive to do this on their own. It works, till it does not. One overlooked resolution. One omission of updating register of directors. Then one day, as you build up to a funding round, and you find yourself in a tangle of compliance in due diligence. Bad timing has the ability to come at the worst time.
In Singapore, professional company secretarial packages are usually bundled and include a registered office address, nominee secretary, regular filing of compliance and ad hoc corporate support. The price is generally modest to an extent that doing it on your own considering the time and the risk involved are seldom cost-effective.
Foreign businesspeople establishing themselves here occasionally do not give enough seriousness to the aspect of corporate governance in Singapore. Clean books, proper records and directors who know their responsibilities are some of the elements behind the image of the country as a leading business hub. This matters here.
The key factors to consider when choosing a provider include being responsive, having true knowledge of your business model, and clear pricing. Do not deal with anyone who takes days to respond or someone who is not able to specify what his or her package is made up of.
Consider your company secretary to be the one who will be holding the rope as you climb. You perhaps do not think about them all the time, but you would know at a glance, should they slip.