[Webinar] Singapore Insolvency Conference 2021

Session 4: Regulatory Developments in Asia-Pacific Jurisdictions in the Wake of Covid-19

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, shutdown measures and the global economic downturn; Asian jurisdictions have implemented a plethora of insolvency reforms and emergency measures to cope with the increase onset of financially distressed companies. In this year’s edition of the Singapore Insolvency Conference, a virtual panel of distinguished regulators and legal practitioners from Singapore, Malaysia and Australia will seek to unpack some of these measures; while offering critical insights into how these measures may cohere or overlap between their respective jurisdictions. As Asia-Pacific economies continue to navigate the uncertain waters of a post-COVID world, the panellists will also recommend areas where their respective insolvency regimes are likely to develop in the near future. In particular, the panel will discuss whether Asia-Pacific jurisdictions ought to adopt a more pro-restructuring approach - that accords greater flexibility to insolvency practitioners and director-shareholders to restructure the liabilities of a financially distressed company.

Topics of the panel discussion include:

1. The COVID-19 pandemic and its implications on companies, bonds and funds listed in the Singapore, Malaysia and Australia stock exchanges;
2. Temporary relief measures for financially distressed companies in Singapore, Malaysia and Australia, and the sufficiency of such measures;
3. The various approaches taken by the regulatory authorities in Singapore, Malaysia and Australia when regulating insolvent listed companies;
4. The Simplified Insolvency Programme introduced by the Singapore Ministry of Law to assist micro and small companies in the restructuring of their debts or winding up;
5. The Australian simplified liquidation and small businesses restructuring mechanisms that came into force on 1 January 2021; and
6. Recent developments concerning the mutual recognition of and assisting of insolvency proceedings between the Courts of Mainland China and Hong Kong.