Beneficial ownership refers to natural persons who directly or indirectly ultimately own and derive financial benefit from a company or commercial activity. Beneficial ownership disclosure allows the general public to understand who has control of a company or a stake on it, so potential conflicts of interest can be identified and prevented. With more mechanisms for monitoring from governments, and the increasing importance of beneficial ownership registries, there is a global trend towards disclosure of this type of information. However, challenges remain significant.
Mongolia is strengthening its beneficial ownership processes, laws, and systems. In fact, a comprehensive beneficial ownership disclosure regime requires careful consideration of challenges beyond the public register.With an ecosystem approach to beneficial ownership, the Leveraging Transparency to Reduce Corruption (LTRC) project, a joint initiative of the Brookings Institution and Results for Development, is supporting actors in Mongolia identifying implementation gaps and viable solutions to concrete challenges .
Building upon the findings and recommendations for a public register in a first report, Beneficial Ownership in Mongolia: A Way Forward, this follow up study focuses on how to tackle complex implementation challenges, based on lessons from other countries and a discussion of Mongolia’s context. These implementation issues are:
- Reporting regulations for State-Owned Enterprises
- Disclosure requirements for companies listed on a stock exchange with varied shareholders
- Definition and identification of foreign Politically Exposed Persons
- Elements related to verification measures for a public register
- Clarifications on the definition of indirect control
- Benefits and challenges associated with a public register
The report concludes with concrete recommendations for government and parliamentarian officials in Mongolia championing its beneficial ownership process.
Authors
- Michael Barron
- Tim Law
- Batsugar Tsedendamba
- Ariuntsetseg Jigmeddor