Deloitte Sri Lanka hosted a webinar “Reforming In the present day for a Resilient Tomorrow: Understanding the Corporations (Modification) Act No. 12 of 2025” following the enactment of the landmark modification to the Corporations Act No. 7 of 2007 on 4th August 2025.
This modification marks a major step in strengthening Sri Lanka’s regulatory framework for corporates, with useful possession disclosure as its key function.
This webinar introduced collectively company regulation consultants, regulators, and Deloitte professionals to debate how these reforms will reshape enterprise practices, governance, and compliance.
Delivering the keynote, Dr. Harsha Cabral, President’s Counsel and Chairman of Nationwide Financial savings Financial institution, outlined the evolution of company regulation in Sri Lanka and the rising significance of transparency.
He highlighted that world our bodies such because the Monetary Motion Job Drive (FATF), World Financial institution, and United Nations Workplace on Medicine and Crime (UNODC) have lengthy referred to as for figuring out the actual house owners of company entities to forestall misuse of firm constructions for cash laundering, tax evasion, and different illicit actions.
Many nations, together with Sri Lanka, started introducing useful possession declarations as early as 2018 by monetary establishments, and with this new modification Act these obligations are actually formally mandated below company regulation.
Dr Cabral emphasised that this represents not only a authorized replace however a cultural shift, inserting clear duties on administrators, secretaries, and shareholders to make sure accountability and transparency.
Shivandini Liyanage, Senior Vice President – Authorized Enforcement & Compliance on the Colombo Inventory Alternate (CSE), defined how the CSE is making ready to align its guidelines with the brand new necessities.
She famous that though laws and prescribed kinds are nonetheless to be finalised, the Central Depository Methods (CDS) should start making ready now by establishing inside programs, issuing tips, and dealing intently with brokers and custodians to establish and report useful house owners; notably these holding 10% or extra of shares.
Given the complexity of possession constructions, she harassed that each CDS and firms might want to strengthen due diligence processes, modernise information assortment practices, and prepare workers to make sure compliance as soon as the Act turns into totally operational.
From the regulatory perspective, Shyama Harshani, Registrar on the Registrar of Corporations, detailed how the ROC will implement the brand new useful possession disclosure regime.
She defined that corporations shall be required to file seven (7) key Helpful Possession (BO) kinds (B01 to B07) on the eROC portal inside prescribed timelines and with relevant charges, as to be set out within the upcoming laws.
She ensured that every one data shall be saved in a centralised registry accessible to regulators and, with sure restrictions, to the general public, reinforcing each transparency and compliance with anti-money laundering and company governance legal guidelines.
Harshani underlined that to keep away from penalties, corporations should preserve tempo with regulatory updates, submit experiences on time, and preserve correct BO data.
This session additionally launched Deloitte’s Inexperienced BO Move, a SharePoint-based automation course of that digitalises and streamlines the gathering of useful possession particulars and securely maintains a useful possession register.
By decreasing guide effort and embedding ESG rules similar to paperless processes and information privateness, Deloitte perceives compliance as a clear and sustainable apply by Inexperienced BO Move.
Moderating the panel dialogue, Disna Perera, Director – Company Secretarial at Deloitte Sri Lanka, shared Deloitte’s perspective on turning compliance into a possibility for stronger governance. She additional emphasised “The message is obvious – the bar for governance necessities has been raised.
Corporations should rapidly adapt to those modifications and leverage expertise successfully.
That is essential not solely to mitigate dangers but in addition to make sure compliance with the evolving regulatory panorama”.
The webinar reaffirmed Deloitte’s function in serving to corporates navigate regulatory reforms with confidence, offering sensible insights and proactive instruments to align compliance with long-term resilience.
