DOF gains easier access to firms’ finance data

The Department of Finance (DOF) now has easier access to the financial information of companies registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as the government tries to shore up tax revenues.

The DOF Wednesday said in a statement that it already signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the SEC last Nov. 17, which would allow the two agencies to “institutionalize data sharing and information exchange” through an electronic format.

According to the DOF, the SEC “will share electronic copies of all basic company information and financial data contained in the General Information Sheets (GIS), as well as all financial data contained in the General Form for Financial Statements (GFFS), the Special Form for Financial Statements (SFFS), and the Audited Financial Statements (AFS).”

The exchange of data and information begins this month.

The data will be used by the DOF “for its internal use,” specifically in formulating “more responsive and effective” policies, research, risk analysis, as well as audit profiling of businesses.

The DOF supervises the country’s two biggest tax collection agencies: the Bureau of Customs, and the Bureau of Internal Revenue.

Under the agreement, the two agencies will hire a data processing service provider, which will facilitate the copying and consolidation of up to 70,000 electronic submissions within 60 working days.

“We fully believe in using every tool and resource available in this digital age to enhance our government’s capacity to serve the Filipino people. Instant access to, and effective management of, information is critical to the DOF’s mission to [strengthen] the country’s fiscal position,” Finance Secretary Cesar V. Purisima was quoted in the statement as saying.

Purisima added that the initiative, in the long run, will serve to “empower the least in our society to stand on their own.”

SEC chair Teresita J. Herbosa echoed the Finance chief’s statement, saying that the information available to SEC would enable the DOF to carry out its mandate “to build a stronger, more resilient economy under a good governance framework.”

SEC supervises all corporations, partnerships and associations granted franchises, licenses and permits by the government. The agency also serves as the repository of registered companies’ financial statements, among other pertinent documents.

SEC is currently under the DOF’s administrative supervision, as mandated under Executive Order No. 37 issued in 2011.

The agreement between the DOF and SEC was supported by the Facilitating Public Investment project, which is being funded by the United States Agency for International Development. The project aims to expand “the fiscal space for public and private investment in the Philippines through higher tax revenue and public expenditure reforms.”