SBF seeks more time for smaller listed companies to comply with new climate-related disclosure rules
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The Singapore Business Federation’s recommendations on June 26 apply to smaller businesses, which make up 84 per cent of SGX listings.
ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
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SINGAPORE – The Singapore Business Federation (SBF) has proposed extending the deadline for small and mid-sized companies listed on the Singapore Exchange (SGX) to comply with the latest sustainability disclosure requirements by one to two years.
This is one of four recommendations released by SBF on June 26, in relation to the disclosures.
Under SGX Regulation’s (SGX RegCo) prevailing sustainability reporting regime, all listed companies have to make climate-related disclosures aligned with standards developed by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) for financial years that start from Jan 1, 2025.
Only 4 per cent out of 40 listed companies polled by SBF and SGX RegCo between April and May in 2025 were very confident about meeting this timeline, even though all the engaged listed companies were already preparing for ISSB disclosures.
More than 90 per cent of them said extending the timeline for mandatory ISSB disclosures by one or two years would be useful for them to prepare higher-quality sustainability reports. They added that a time extension would not detract them from the work they had already begun.
The three other recommendations from SBF are:
Making disclosure requirements proportionate for small- and mid-cap listed companies;
Providing Singapore-relevant cross-sector and sector-specific guidance; and
Designating a central platform for digital reporting of climate-related disclosures.
These recommendations apply to the small and mid-sized listed companies that make up 84 per cent of SGX listings, although not all listings (including secondary-listed issuers) are subject to sustainability reporting requirements.
SBF chief executive Kok Ping Soon said: “This does not represent a step back from Singapore’s climate-reporting ambitions, but is a practical measure to provide smaller listed companies more time to strengthen internal capabilities and incorporate best practices after larger listed companies make their ISSB disclosures for financial year 2025.”
While preparations for ISSB climate reporting are under way, a deadline extension would enable small- and mid-cap companies to, for example, prepare subsidiaries that may be based overseas. It would strengthen data collection systems and enable these smaller businesses to take guidance from the FY2025 ISSB reports by larger listed companies.
Extending the deadline would enable small- and mid-cap listed companies to be eligible for the Sustainability Reporting Grant from the Economic Development Board and Enterprise Singapore. This is because the grant is awarded only to reports filed before the requirement to comply with mandatory climate-related disclosures kicks in.
Mr Kok also recommended increasing the awareness and application of proportionality mechanisms, with more guidance within and across sectors relevant to the Republic.
“These will help smaller listed companies in Singapore take full advantage of any compliance deadline extension to more effectively transition their business,” he said.
In response to the SBF recommendations, an SGX RegCo spokesperson said it is aware that the ISSB standards are ambitious and that smaller companies, in particular, have found compliance challenging.
“We therefore welcome the SBF paper and appreciate the effort to gather feedback from the business community, particularly smaller listed companies. The insights from this paper will be valuable in helping us strike the right balance between advancing corporate sustainability goals and recognising the operational realities that businesses face today.”
The spokesperson added: “Ultimately, we want our companies to produce quality reports that are accurate and decision-useful.” THE BUSINESS TIMES
