Global Updates on Compliance, Digital Transformation, and Transparency
September 2026 put director identity and beneficial-ownership transparency firmly at the centre of registry reform. The UK brought its first prosecutions over identity verification, South Africa opened its beneficial-ownership data to law enforcement, and regulators from Australia and Canada to Saudi Arabia and Singapore tightened the rules on what companies must disclose and keep up to date. Here is our round-up of the month’s most significant developments for the registry community.
Stay ahead with our round-up of the latest global registry news shaping compliance, innovation, and digital transformation.
Here are this month's highlights:
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- United Kingdom: First prosecutions over Companies House identity verification
Directors are being warned to verify their identities with Companies House after the Insolvency Service brought its first prosecutions linked to the new identity-verification requirements.
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- South Africa: CIPC opens beneficial-ownership data to law enforcement
The CIPC has launched a Beneficial Ownership Disclosure module for law-enforcement agencies, with Minister Parks Tau saying the register and closer inter-agency collaboration will strengthen financial integrity and the fight against money laundering.
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- Australia: Director IDs move into routine ASIC reporting
New reforms will embed director identification numbers into routine corporate reporting and expand ASIC’s powers to manage, correct and enforce registry information.
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- Singapore: ACRA sets 20 October start for the next phase of corporate-law changes
ACRA has confirmed that further amendments under the Corporate and Accounting Laws (Amendment) Act 2025 take effect on 20 October 2026, covering updated annual return requirements, reduced filing obligations, registered office rules and a streamlined striking-off and restoration process.
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- Canada: Corporations Canada challenges “no ISC” register filings
Corporations Canada has stepped up scrutiny of federal corporations’ individuals with significant control (ISC) registers, contacting companies that report having no ISC and asking for supporting documents.
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- United Kingdom: Fraudster files fake HSBC documents at Companies House
A fraudster filed fake documents relating to HSBC on the Companies House register — a reminder of why the UK is tightening verification of who can file.
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- Saudi Arabia: New companies register rules for Special Economic Zones
Saudi Arabia has issued new Companies Rules, Companies Register Rules and Trade Names Rules for its Special Economic Zones, designing a registry regime from the ground up that includes mandatory UBO disclosure and trade names recorded in the companies register.
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- Australia: ASIC consults on free access to more companies register data
ASIC is seeking feedback on making more register information available free of charge, including officeholders’ names and status, director ID numbers and whether a director has confirmed their director ID.
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- Fiji: Registrar witness says company records are not independently verified
A witness from the Registrar’s office has told a Fijian court that company records are not independently verified.
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- Malta: Financial and legal support for young first-time company founders
The Malta Business Registry has shared a government announcement of financial aid and legal assistance for young people setting up their first start-up company.
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- United States: Hawaiʻi’s $2M business registration system criticised
Hawaiʻi’s new US$2 million business registration system has come under heavy criticism.
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- New Zealand: New organised-crime portfolio targets beneficial ownership and phoenix companies
Casey Costello has been named Minister of Organised Crime, with coverage pointing to measures such as requiring companies to disclose their ultimate beneficial owners and making it harder to close a company and reopen as a “phoenix” entity.
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We Want to Hear From You!
Are there important developments or news about your registry that you’d like to share with the wider registry community? We invite registry professionals and organizations to submit news for inclusion in our weekly digest. Submit your updates to press@fostermoore.com and help us keep the registry world informed!