Victims of foul play at Singapore-listed companies need faster, better relief

MORE than three years after Iceberg Research first alleged overly aggressive accounting at Noble Group, Singapore investigators said on Tuesday that they are probing suspected breaches of disclosure and accounting rules at the commodities trading company.

Investors may be forgiven for feeling that this is too little, too late. The view is that the regulatory watchdogs that protect Singapore's financial ecosystem must act faster, and must find ways to deliver more meaningful justice for victims if wrongdoing is found at listed companies.

To be clear, the latest investigation is welcome. It gives hope that investors will finally have a proper and thorough explanation for Noble's collapse. If it turns out that there was wrongdoing, as the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (Acra) suspects, it is hoped that the perpetrators will be held accountable.