SEC and PSE Compliance During ECQja

Author Atty. Janice L. Co

With the entire Luzon placed under Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ), it becomes worrisome for some private establishments on how to comply with the regulatory deadlines of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and The Philippine Stock Exchange, Inc. (PSE) that will fall due on the ECQ period. The preparation or completion of their financial statements, for example, cannot be completed on time for filing this April. Companies may not be able to submit the documents required to be under oath in view of the difficulty of securing the services of a Notary Public at this time. There is also the question on how will companies submit their reports while the ECQ is being implemented.

In response, the SEC and PSE advised the public through circulars, notices and advisories of their temporary arrangements until the ECQ is lifted. The SEC adopted work from home arrangements to minimize the disruption brought about by COVID-19 in the delivery of public service. During the ECQ period, it will allow filing of reportorial requirements by electronic mail provided that its guidelines are observed. The PSE, on the other hand, was earlier required to cease operating but was eventually allowed
to resume operations by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Disease or IATF. All trading activities will have to be conducted remotely and it will be implementing shorter trading hours (i.e. from 9:00 AM to 1:00PM).

The summary of issuances by the SEC and PSE as of April 2, 2020 in relation to ECQ may be accessed through the links below. These are categorized into –

– SEC Memorandum Circulars;
– SEC and PSE Notices for Publicly Listed Companies;
– SEC Notices for Corporations with Secondary License (other than PLCs); and
– SEC Notices for Corporations without Secondary License.

Since many private establishments have also adopted the work from home arrangement and is business as usual, we expect that SEC and PSE will be posting more information and further announcements on their websites to address the various concerns of the public.

Links: Summary of SEC Memorandum Circulars (as of April 2, 2020)
Summary of SEC and PSE Notices for Publicly Listed Companies (as of April 2, 2020)
Summary of SEC Notices for Corporations with Secondary License (other than PLCs) (as of April 2, 2020)
Summary of SEC Notices for Corporations without Secondary License (as of April 2, 2020)