Overview

On 30 September 2011 the Guernsey Financial Services Commission issued a new Code of Corporate Governance to come into effect on 1 January 2012. The Code is intended to provide a formal expression of the components of good corporate practice against which shareholders, boards and the Commission can better assess the degree of governance exercised over certain companies in Guernsey's finance sector. The Commission's existing "Guidance on Corporate Governance in the Finance Sector" dated December 2004 will cease to have effect on 1 January 2012.
Publication of the Code follows a period of consultation with industry which began in January 2010. Apart from some clarification on the wording of the principles, the major changes to the draft Code issued in April 2011 are the application of the Code to the boards of collective investment schemes and a specific exemption for Guernsey-Licensed branches of foreign entities.