Stable leadership transition critical to country's businesses and economy: Shanmugam

STABLE leadership transition in a country is important to businesses and economy, Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam said on Monday at the launch of the 9th Corporate Governance Week by the Securities Investors Association (Singapore).

In his opening address to a 200-strong gathering on Monday at Mandarin Orchard Hotel, Mr Shanmugam said that the reliability of good leadership was critical for a small country like Singapore. Good governments are also able to address issues like social mobility and inequality while fending off the temptation of populism, which can damage economies.

Also at the event, US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) commissioner Robert Jackson Jr urged attendees to press their stock exchanges to properly oversee dual-class shares. Describing the United States' relatively liberal stance toward the dual-class structure, he said that exchanges in this region have an opportunity to oversee the issue better, and should do so.