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DICA directs companies to open corporate accounts

The Directorate of Investment and Company Administration (DICA) notified the companies on 22 November to open corporate accounts, according to its statement. Some companies or organizations established under the Myanmar Companies Law are found to run the business with the personal account of the directors without having corporate accounts. According to Section 5 (A) of the Myanmar Companies Law, a company is a legal entity in its own right separate from its members having full rights, powers and privileges. So, every company is obligated to have separate accounts to hold and manage money made within businesses.

The DICA hereby notified, in exercising the power conferred under Section 462 Subsection (a) (ii) of the Myanmar Companies Law, that a corporate account is required for the companies to deal with financial accounting of the businesses. This notification comprehends every registered company at the DICA. The number of companies registered on the online registry system, MyCO, reached approximately 6,000 in the past ten months this year, the statistics released by the Directorate of Investment and Company Administration (DICA) indicated. The registration and re-registration of companies on the MyCO website commenced on 1 August 2018 under the Myanmar Companies Law 2017.

During the January-Octoberperiod, the number of registered companies on MyCO was 1,373 in January, 188 in February,163 in March, 254 in April, 686 in May, 775 in June, 433 in July, 360 in August, 733 in September and 1,027 in October, the DICA’s statistics showed. At present, 100 per cent of the applicants are using the online registration platform, the DICA stated. Last year, the figures of registered companies stood at 1,415 in January, 1,298 in February and 1,015 in March, only 348 companies in April, 798 in May, 1,314 in June, 1,650 in July, 1,551 in August, 1,378 in September, 1,693 in October, 1,099 in November and 1,521 in December, as per statistics of the DICA.

In 2019, the figure stood at 1,733 in January 2019, 1,419 in February, 1,108 in March, and over 1,045 in April, 1,411 in May, 1,307 in June, 1,428 in July, 1,302 in August and 1,181 in September. The figures reached a fresh new peak of 2,059 in October 2019. Then, 1,615 new companies in November and 1,772 in December were recorded, data of the DICA showed. When the online registry was launched in August, 2018, 1,816 new companies registered on MyCO. The figure stood at 2,218 in September 2018, 1,671 in October, 1,431 in November and 1,364 in December 2018.

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

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Thilawa SEZ attracts US$102 mln in FY2020-2021

Foreign investments of over US$102 million, including the expansion of capital by the existing enterprises, flowed into Thilawa Special Economic Zone under the Special Economic Zone Law and one foreign enterprise was given the go-ahead in the financial year 2020-2021. While the manufacturing sector absorbed the largest share of foreign investments, the investments were also pumped into the trading, other services, logistics, hotels and tourism, and real estate sectors. Japan topped the list of foreign investors so far, accounting for over 33 per cent of the overall investment, followed by Singapore and Thailand.

FDI also flowed into the SEZs from the Republic of Korea, Hong Kong (SAR), the UK, Australia, the UAE, Malaysia, Austria, China (Taipei), Denmark, Brunei Darussalam, Viet Nam, France, Switzerland, and the Netherlands as well. Myanmar is currently implementing three Special Economic Zones — Thilawa, Kyaukpyu, and Dawei. Out of the three, Thilawa is leading to better infrastructure and successful businesses. More than 60 per cent of businesses in Thilawa is domestic-oriented manufacturing enterprises, while 40 per cent are export-oriented manufacturers, according to a press statement issued by Myanmar Thilawa SEZ Holdings Public Ltd in June 2019.

A company exporting at least 75 per cent of the production in value is registered as a Free Zone investor and is exempt from paying corporate tax for 7 years from the time it starts commercial operations. Companies such as logistics, which support export-oriented manufacturing, can also be listed as free zone companies. Domestic-oriented manufacturing companies are regarded as promotion zone companies, and they are eligible for a five-year holiday on corporate tax. Between 1 October and 30 September of the FY2019-2020, eight foreign enterprises were given the green light, ploughing in capitals of $163.277 million.

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar