The recent intensification of the Chinese authorities' scrutiny of the country's financial industry for possible corruption activities presents some lessons for our local bourse ("Fosun chairman latest to disappear amid anti-graft probe"; Dec 12).

I was an S-chip investor in the past, and experience informs me that if the authorities do not possess the legislative powers to investigate foreign companies for any suspicious activities while listed on our local bourse, it is not feasible to hasten the listing of more such foreign businesses on the Singapore Exchange.

Lay investors who may park their retirement funds and savings in these companies will be the vulnerable ones, should the companies go belly-up without any body here having the power to take such unscrupulous firms to task.

Francis Heng