Those Who "Cheza Chini" Have 6 More Months To Declare Their Possessions...

[SIZE=6]Companies get six more months to reveal secret owners[/SIZE]

Companies have six more months to disclose to the State the identity of secret shareholders including names, phone numbers and residential addresses in efforts to unmask illicit wealth.

The Office of the Attorney General said on Wednesday it has extended the deadline for companies to fill the beneficial ownership registers to July 31 from the earlier timeline which was to lapse on Sunday.

The Business Registration Service (BRS), the State agency in the AG’s office overseeing the process, said there has been a “significantly high” number of applications to file the data as firms rush to comply with Section 93A of the Companies Act 2015.

“Having taken note of the progress made in filing these registers and in the spirit of encouraging compliance with the Companies Act, BRS has in consultation with stakeholders granted a final grace period of six months ending 31st July 2021,” BRS director-general Kenneth Gathuma said in a statement.

The law requires new firms to fill the Beneficial Ownership Information E-Register at the Companies Registry ahead of registration and existing firms to comply within the set timelines in a major shakeup of shareholder records.

“We have first operationalized the e-Register for private limited companies and shall progressively operationalize the e-Registers for the other types of companies,” Mr Gathuma said.

The new rules, which are aimed at curbing insider trading, will shed light on market activity by limiting the use of nominee accounts that investors have been using to side-step ownership limits in firms listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange.

They are also aiming to curb money laundering by revealing the true identify of investors owning large blocks of shares in both private and listed companies, who will also be of interest to the taxman.

“Failure to comply with this requirement after 31st July 2021 makes it an offence to the company and every officer of the company who is in default and such officer will be liable to a fine upon conviction,” Mr Gathuma said.

The details required for filing include names of the substantial shareholders, KRA PIN, national ID or passport copies, postal address, residential address, occupation, telephone number and the date when the investor became a beneficial owner.

Meanwhile:

Most Kenyans have high expectations of what the new United States President Joe Biden administration will accomplish for them than they anticipated in the former President Donald Trump’s regime, a new global poll released recently suggests.

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The poll by British international Internet-based market research and data analytics firm YouGov ranks Kenyans as the most optimistic foreign citizens about the global leadership of President Biden.

German political foundation Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung New York (FES) commissioned YouGov to field a survey of twelve countries including Kenya.

The survey included several questions measuring public opinion toward former US President Donald Trump and President Biden.

“Countries around the world give Joe Biden high net approval ratings. This includes 89 percent approval in Kenya, 73 percent in Germany, 69 percent in South Africa, 66 percent in Indonesia, 66 percent in Mexico,” says the Poll.

Approximately 1,000 respondents from Kenya alongside Brazil, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, Turkey, and the US were polled in the study.

Kenya has formally struck an optimistic tone toward President Biden’s new administration with President Uhuru Kenyatta terming Biden as “a friend of Kenya” whose last visit to the country while serving as vice-president under former US President Barack Obama helped “renew the Kenya-USA ties.”

Empty threats. The deadline will pass and no action will be taken against those who fail to comply, MARK MY WORDS.

Hii ni moto ya makaratasi

6 more months for them to put this roadside announcement into law ama they have nothing on their hands.

Those fines were punitive!!! 50K per day!!!

Hot air!

Everybody is doing illicit business in kenya most of this companies dont pay taxes and now you wanna shut them down it won’t happen most of the companies shares are owned by government officials wakiongozwa na kamwana

Kelele ya chura hii.