Companies (Amendment) Act 2025 elevating governance, transparency and global alignment

In the following interview, Harshanee Deshapriya, Group Chief Legal Officer of JXG (Janashakthi Group), explores how the Companies (Amendment) Act No. 12 of 2025 fosters a financial ecosystem and future of reward through its implementation of transparency, accountability, and global best practices.

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She examines the importance of enhancing good governance and compliance for local financial institutions to drive sustainable futures for the country.Following are excerpts of the interview.

Consistent with globally recognised standards of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF),with a particular focus on Anti Money Laundering (AML) and the prohibition of financing terrorism, the Act upholds a strictanti-anonymity principle.

This principle requires all natural persons who ultimately own, control, and benefit from companies to identify and disclose themselves, their companies, trusts and/or accounts. What this means is, it applies to real, identifiable human beings beyondlegal persons such as companies or other corporate entities. All natural persons are required to be transparent within corporate registries to uphold global anti-anonymity and beneficial ownership standards.

Since it eliminates ownership from going unnoticed, the Act enhances traceability. It introduces mandatory beneficial ownership registers. These are public or private records of the individuals who own or control a company. It also prohibitsthe issuance of bearer shares and share warrants to bearer.

The Act enhances investor confidence, reinforces a culture of ethical business practices, and promotes healthier global business operations by strengthening transparency. Consequently, it strengthens local corporate governance, aligning it with global regulatory frameworks and standards.