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Guideline on Public Disclosure of Information

The purpose of this guideline is to set out the minimum disclosure standards which financial institutions are required to adopt in respect of information to be disclosed in their annual financial statements and their annual reports, which shall also be posted on their websites. Financial institutions shall have a formal disclosure policy approved and periodically reviewed by the board of directors that addresses their approach for determining disclosures and the internal controls over the disclosure process. In addition, financial institutions shall implement a process for assessing the appropriateness of their disclosures, including their validation and frequency. Financial institutions shall ensure that disclosures, other than those made in the financial statements, are appropriately verified and are consistent with information published in their audited financial statements, and that reasonable steps are taken to ensure that the information is not false or misleading in any material respect. A financial institution shall make disclosures in accordance with this guideline in respect of its last financial year, with comparative figures for two previous years, unless otherwise specified. Management Discussion and Analysis (MDA), which forms part of a financial institution’s annual report, enhances transparency and comparability of its policies, strategies and practices in different areas of its performance and asset value. The scope of information and the level of disaggregation and detail in the MDA should be commensurate with the size and nature of the financial institution’s operations. MDA should as a minimum cover the following areas: (a) financial review; (b) risk management policies and controls; (c) concentration of risk policies; (d) related party transactions policies and practices; and (e) statement of corporate governance practices.