SEC gets good housekeeping mark from COA

MANILA, Philippines — The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the corporate regulator, has obtained the coveted unqualified audit ratings from the Commission on Audit (COA).

In an independent auditor’s report dated July 30, state auditor Concepcion Reyes rendered an unqualified opinion on the fairness of presentation of the Commission’s 2019 financial statements.

“In our opinion, the accompanying financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Securities and Exchange Commission as at Dec. 31, 2019, and its financial performance, changes in net assets/equity, cash flows, comparison of budget and actual amounts for the year then ended, and notes to the financial statements, in accordance with the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSASs),” the report read.

This means that the SEC received a good housekeeping mark from COA, marking the second time this year that it received such unqualified opinion.

Auditors issue an unqualified or unmodified opinion when they conclude that financial statements, as a whole, are free from material misstatements which could arise from either fraud or error.

In all, COA has given the SEC  good housekeeping marks for two straight years now, breaking the rows of audit findings it had made over the past decade

SEC chairperson Emilio Aquino said the unqualified opinion rendered by COA affirms the SEC’s commitment to “honest, sound and prudent use of public resources to improve our operations for the benefit of the people we serve.”

“The audit rating also strengthens our position to lead by example as it speaks of our adherence to the highest standards of transparency, accountability and good governance that we likewise require of corporations, capital market participants and other entities under our supervision in the best interest of their investors, clients and other stakeholders,” he said.

The SEC has also consistently ranked among the “sincerest institutions in fighting corruption.”

This is according to surveys conducted by the Social Weather Stations, with support from the Integrity for Investments, Initiative, funding from the United States Agency for International Development, and in partnership with the National Competitiveness Council and The Asia Foundation.

In 2019, the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission also recognized the SEC’s implementation of the Company Registration System (CRS), which minimized human intervention in the processing of applications and thereby reduced the opportunity for corruption.

“The CRS allows for the automated and online pre-processing of applications for the registration of corporations and partnerships, licensing of foreign corporations, and amendments of the articles of incorporation, among others,” the SEC said.

Aquino said his goal is to help ensure the integrity of the SEC while providing a business friendly environment in the country.