The role of the Company Secretary in Malaysia

A company secretary is an officer of a company  and pursuant to the Companies Act, 2016, every company must appoint a company secretary within 30 days either of its incorporation or if the post is vacated through resignation or removal or otherwise.  A company secretary has the huge responsibility to ensure that the Company stays in compliance with statutory and regulatory requirements at all times, and to advice the Board on regulatory matters as well as to make sure that all the paperwork is filed on time and in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act, 2016 and other related legislation.

In a nutshell, your company secretary will notify the relevant authorities, namely the SSM (the Companies Commission of Malaysia) whenever there is are changes in the Company's structure  such as the appointment and /or resignations (or even removals)  of  directors,  shareholders, auditors, other officers of the Company; changes in  share capital or the name of the company. First, you need to notify your company secretary to effect the  necessary changes. The company secretary will prepare the necessary resolutions and forms to be lodged with the SSM to update the  SSM of such change. The company secretary will also maintain and update the Statutory Registers,  and prepare minutes and resolutions, attend board meetings and also advise the Board. 

While it may seem that the Company Secretary is an expert at multi-tasking, your Company Secretary may not be able to advise you as a lawyer, accountant, tax advisor or on human resource matters. These are all different roles and should be performed by the respective professionals who are trained in these areas. 

If your company is in need of a competent Company Secretary, do get in touch with us.