Business conditions and regulatory initiatives have resulted in a variety of codes and regulations to meet the needs of local capital markets[i]. For instance, in the United States, several major corporate and accounting scandals such as those perpetrated by Enron, WorldCom, Tyco International, and Adelphia communications resulted in the enactment of laws and rules to restore and maintain confidence in the financial markets. Other nations experienced similar situations and enacted rules and regulations to promote consumers and investors’ confidence in the financial market. This paper examined the major events that led to the enactment of corporate governance regulations in Australia, South Africa, and the United Kingdom (UK). And analyzed …show more content…

It specifies the objective of an effective internal auditing [add value to the corporation] and the importance of ethics in decision-making and financial reporting. • UK pays more attention to corporate remuneration and audit committee’s routine meetings. The UK code requires audit committee to meet privately with the CAE at least annually while Australia’s regulation does not issue detail requirements for the meeting. • South African requires the board to follow the ‘apply or explain’ approach in its collective decision-making, which could help explain how the principles and recommendations were applied or not applied.

The Most Comprehensive Governance Regulation

Based on this review, we believe Australia has the most comprehensive governance requirements. The Corporate Governance Council of the ASX[viii] issued 10 Principles of Good Corporate Governance and Best Practice Recommendations and specified two major requirements that worth mentioning.[ix]

• Disclosure Requirement-Companies listed under ASX are required to provide statements in their annual reports detailing how they follow the 10-core principles and best practices recommendation. They are also expected to explain what they do not follow. • Audit Committee Requirement-ASX requires all listed companies to have an audit committee to serve as an oversight body for risk management and control.
References

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[i] The Institute of Internal