Dealing with Perception - A Look at Overseas-Listed Chinese Firms in Singapore

Throughout the world today, overseas-listed Chinese firms ("OLCFs") have received much flak from media, securities regulators and investors alike. Despite their initial popularity, the performances of OLCFs have been dismal across the board, both in terms of corporate governance and relative performance. All in all, the prevailing rhetoric seems to suggest that OLCFs as a whole are not only poorly governed, but are also predisposed to be so. While there might be some truth attached to this perception, this author would caution against perpetuating these warnings or taking them at face value. This author will therefore attempt to answer two questions in this paper. In the first part of the paper, the author seeks to explore whether perceptions about OLCFs are justified. In the second part of the paper, this author aims to explore possible ways to correct the issues underlying such a perception. This author will attempt to answer both questions in the context of Singapore's capital markets and their regulatory environment.