SEC shelves plan to raise fees, charges

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has officially shelved its proposed plan to impose higher fees, which were announced back in 2023, aimed at supporting the sustainability of its operations and the development of information technology (IT)-related systems.

- By RICHMOND MERCURIO

SEC commissioner McJill Bryant Fernandez told The STAR that the proposed increase in charges by the agency “is on hold.”

“In the near future, we will not implement any increase,” Fernandez said.

“As you've noticed, we've also introduced discounts. So we're balancing. But the concern, of course, is we have to study all of our IT initiatives,” he said.

The SEC released the revised schedule of fees in August 2023 to solicit comments, suggestions, and inputs from stakeholders.

Among the proposed changes is that fees would increase to 1/4 of one percent of an entity’s authorized capital stock, but not less than P2,500 of the subscription price of the subscribed capital stock, or whichever is higher.

The proposed revised schedule of fees, the SEC said, was the result of a thorough and careful study, under which a dedicated committee was constituted to assess the current fees in relation to operating costs to ensure the sustainability of the commission’s services and fulfillment of its legal mandate.