BRETTON WOODS AGREEMENTS (AMENDMENT) BILL

Order for Second Reading read. 4.30 p.m.

The Minister for Finance (Mr Hon Sui Sen): Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time."

The Bill seeks to amend the Bretton Woods Agreements Act by adding a new section 11 for the purpose of exempting the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (the World Bank) and any issue by the Bank of shares, debentures, bonds, notes and other securities from the provisions of the Companies Act.

Under the Companies Act, a "corporation" is widely defined to mean any body cor- porate formed or incorporated or existing in Singapore or outside Singapore. The World Bank falls within this wide definition, As such it must, unless otherwise exempted, comply with the requirements of the Companies Act in the event of a public issue of its securities in Singapore. However, it may not be appropriate to apply these requirements to the World Bank as a prestigious and well-established international organization. Unless the Bank is exempted from these requirements, it will not be able to offer its securities in the Singapore capital market on the same basis as in other capital markets.

Statutory exemption from the requirements of the Companies Act had already been conferred on the Asian Development Bank by the Asian Development Bank (Amendment) Act, 1976.

The World Bank made its first issue of Yen bonds in Singapore in February 1981. In connection with that issue, specific exemption under the Companies Act had to be given to the Bank so that it need not have to comply with certain requirements of the Act. The general exemption contained in this Bill, which is on the same lines as the exemption granted to the Asian Development Bank, will facilitate further issues in Singapore of securities by the World Bank and will dispense with the need to grant specific exemption each time the Bank offers its securities for issue in Singapore.

Sir, I beg to move.

Question put, and agreed to.

Bill accordingly read a Second time and committed to a Committee of the whole House.

The House immediately resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill. - [Mr Hon Sui Sen].

Bill considered in Committee; reported without amendment; read a Third time and passed.