The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has launched a host of new digital services for the registration and monitoring of corporations in the country as it opened its new office at Makati Avenue in Makati City to mark its 85th anniversary last June 22.
The agency officially launched the following new e-services:
- Electronic SEC Universal Registration Environment (eSECURE),
- Electronic SEC Education, Analysis, and Research Computing Hub (eSEARCH),
- SEC API Marketplace,
- Electronic Registry Application for Market Participants (eRAMP), and
- SEC Check App 2.0
The SEC acts as the country’s corporate registrar by virtue of Commonwealth Act No. 287. Enacted on June 3, 1938, the law authorized the commission to perform all functions related to the registration of corporations and associations.
“We are happy to report that in consonance with [the government’s] envisioned digital economy and e-governance program, we will launch a wave of digital initiatives during this momentous occasion,” SEC chairperson Emilio B. Aquino said in his opening remarks.
The SEC developed eSECURE, eSEARCH, SEC API Marketplace, eRAMP, and SEC CheckApp 2.0 in line with the government’s push for e-governance and thrust to attract investments and business in the Philippines.
eSECURE serves as a company’s gateway toSEC online services, including the newly launched applications. Users can log in to eSECURE and access their accounts without the need to individually log in to each service.
Through risk-based credentialing, eSECURE electronically authenticates the identity of SEC clients, thereby preventing unauthorized access to confidential company information.
It works against the perpetration of investment scams and money laundering activities, as well as improves financial integrity and readily exacts accountability.
eSEARCH and SEC API Marketplace, meanwhile, will allow the public to obtain data from corporate reports submitted to the SEC.
Serving mainly as a tool for research and discovery, eSEARCH is an avenue for the public to purchase and download authenticated SEC documents online.
Electronic copies of documents will be in PDF with text layer format, allowing for easier collection and analysis of data. With eSEARCH, investment evaluation and vetting of contracting parties can be commenced in just a couple of minutes.
Meanwhile, SEC API Marketplace allows the direct sending and ingestion of data from one application to another, without the need for a user or encoding on the receiving end, and for minimal data transfer in between.
It expedites the availment of financial services, promotes financial inclusion, helps ensure financial stability, and addresses consumer protection concerns.
Another new service is eRAMP, a dedicated system for capital market professionals and institutions such as broker dealers and fund managers to manage their licensure with the SEC.
Capital market participants and institutions will be able to process their applications for registration, payment of annual fees, and other notification requirements through eRAMP.
The platform also acts as an online registry of all capital market participants and institutions that are registered with the SEC. eRAMP widens the breadth of the capital markets while ensuring investor protection.
The commission has also introduced upgrades to its official mobile application.
SEC CheckApp 2.0 lets users check whether an investment opportunity is legitimate or not through the CheckwithSEC feature, where the names of all corporations registered with the SEC maybe accessed in real time.
Users can also check whether a proposed company name is available through the app.
CAROL, the SEC’s Customer Care Online Assistant, will likewise provide SEC stakeholders with real-time answers to their queries and concerns. The app is a convenient 24/7 personal guide to the SEC’s services on the go.
More than improving the ease of doing business through easier company registration, the SEC said the new digital services seek to achieve a secure business environment through strict compliance with laws and regulations and a more informed investor base equipped with tools to make smart financial decisions.
