二十国集团（G20）领导人近日批准了修订后的《二十国集团/经合组织公司治理原则》（下简称《治理原则》）。
《治理原则》每两年更新一次，旨在为公司治理的法律、监管和体制框架提供一个全球基准。修订内容涉及股东权益、机构投资者的作用、公司信息披露和透明度、董事会责任的新指南和更新指南，并首次包含可持续性和复原力相关指南，以帮助公司应对与气候相关及其他方面的可持续风险和机会。
2023年《经合组织公司治理概况》也在二十国集团峰会上发布，内容主要是追踪各国对《治理原则》的实施情况。
经合组织秘书长Mathias Cormann表示：“修订后的《治理原则》标志着经合组织和二十国集团所有成员达成了一项新的、重要的国际共识，并强烈希望加强对公司可持续性和复原力方面的指导，以支持企业实施绿色转型并适应气候风险。《治理原则》是各方密集合作进程的成果，旨在通过反映不同地区的不同资本市场趋势，确保这一重要公约继续成为公司治理的全球标准，并与发达经济体和新兴经济体都相关联。”
在国际税收问题上，《治理原则》鼓励各司法管辖区制定框架，确保对企业集团进行监督，重点关注集团公司与其母公司的控制关系、公司住所以及纳入合并财务报告的适当性等方面。
《治理原则》指出：“企业集团在许多司法管辖区普遍存在[......]这使得监管机构更有必要确保公司治理框架能够对企业集团实施有效监管。否则，企业集团广泛而复杂的结构可能会给集团结构内上市母公司或子公司的股东和利益相关者带来风险，包括滥用关联方交易。作为集团税收筹划战略的一部分，一些集团公司还可能被用于在集团内部转移资金，或者可能将资金用于董事会/高管薪酬或股息的支付”。
除其他众多内容外，《治理原则》还规定了董事会应采用的高道德标准。《治理原则》指出，司法管辖区越来越多地要求董事会监督游说、财务和税收筹划策略，从而为当局提供及时和有针对性的信息，并阻止那些无益于公司及其股东长期利益、且可能导致法律和声誉风险的实践，例如寻求激进的税收筹划方案。
《治理原则》建议集团制定税务风险管理策略，并指出：“董事会采用的全面风险管理策略和系统应包括税务管理和税务风险合规，以确保能够充分识别和评估与税务相关的财务、监管和声誉风险”。
G20 Agrees Updated Principles Of Corporate Governance
G20 leaders have approved revised G20/OECD Principles of Corporate Governance.
The Principles, which are updated every two years, are intended to provide a global benchmark for legal, regulatory, and institutional frameworks for corporate governance. The revisions include new and updated guidance on shareholder rights, the role of institutional investors, corporate disclosures and transparency, the responsibilities of boards, and, for the first time, on sustainability and resilience to help companies manage climate-related and other sustainability risks and opportunities.
The 2023 edition of the OECD Corporate Governance Factbook was also launched at the G20 summit. This publication is intended to complement the Principles by tracking how countries implement them.
"The revised Principles mark a significant, renewed international consensus and a strong desire from all OECD and G20 Members to strengthen guidance on companies' sustainability and resilience, to help them support the green transition and adapt to climate risks," OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann said. "They are the result of an intensive, collaborative process to ensure this important instrument remains the global standard for corporate governance, and relevant to advanced and emerging economies alike, by reflecting different capital market trends in different regions."
On international tax matters, the Principles encourage jurisdictions to develop frameworks to ensure oversight of company groups focusing on aspects such as the controlling relationship of group companies and their parent, companies' domicile, and appropriateness of inclusion in consolidated financial reporting, among other aspects.
The report says: "The prevalence of company groups in many jurisdictions has [...] heightened the need for regulators to ensure that the corporate governance framework provides means to effectively monitor them. If not, the extensive and complex structures of company groups may pose risks to shareholders and stakeholders of publicly traded parent or subsidiary companies within group structures, including through abusive related-party transactions. Some group companies may also be used to shift funds within the group as part of the group's tax planning strategies, or may use the funds for board/executive remuneration or dividend payments."
Among numerous other things, the Principles state boards should apply high ethical standards. The report notes jurisdictions are increasingly demanding that boards oversee lobbying, finance, and tax-planning strategies, thus providing authorities with timely and targeted information and discouraging practices, for example the pursuit of aggressive tax planning schemes, that do not contribute to the long-term interests of the company and its shareholders, and can cause legal and reputational risks.
The Principles recommends groups establish tax risk management policies. "Comprehensive risk management strategies and systems adopted by boards should include tax management and tax compliance risks, with a view to ensuring that the financial, regulatory and reputational risks associated with taxation are fully identified and evaluated," the report recommends.