GLE Asia
Legal intelligence across Asia and Oceania every fortnight
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Good morning from the GLE Editorial desk. This fortnight the region’s regulators set a run of hard deadlines that counsel cannot let drift. India’s market regulator has reopened the open-market share-buyback route from 1 August, but capped it and boxed it in with new guardrails. Korea’s platform-liability Act is now live, exposing large online services to five-times punitive damages for false and manipulated information. Australia’s Tranche 2 anti-money-laundering regime has brought law firms and accountants into scope for the first time, with a 29 July AUSTRAC enrolment cut-off aimed squarely at the profession. Singapore has reset its retirement, re-employment and work-pass thresholds from 1 July, and Bangladesh has locked corporate and personal tax rates for five years. For advisers running corporate, disputes, tax and compliance work across the region, several clocks started at once.
Joel Gordon, Editorial · Global Law Experts
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Quick digest
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India’s SEBI reopens the stock-exchange buyback route from 1 August, but caps open-market buybacks at under 15 per cent of paid-up capital and free reserves.
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Australia’s Tranche 2 regime makes law firms, accountants and conveyancers reporting entities, with a hard 29 July AUSTRAC enrolment deadline.
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Korea’s “July 7 Act” is now in force: platforms with over one million daily users face takedown duties and up to five-times punitive damages.
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Jurisdictions covered
India · South Korea · Australia · Singapore · Bangladesh · Hong Kong · Indonesia · Philippines · Sri Lanka · Pakistan · Papua New Guinea · Malaysia
Lawyers featured in this edition
Joseph James Joaquino Jr · Peter Obrien · Siddharth Mahajan · Shagun Badhwar · Lim Tat
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What mattered this fortnight
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SEBI Reopens the Open-Market Buyback Route From 1 August, but Caps It Under 15 Per Cent
The Securities and Exchange Board of India notified the SEBI (Buy-Back of Securities) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 on 1 July, with the changes taking effect on 1 August. The amendments bring back the stock-exchange (open-market) buyback route that SEBI had phased out from April 2025, but cap exchange-route buybacks at less than 15 per cent of a company’s paid-up capital and free reserves, shorten timelines and add investor safeguards including a bar on any buyback that would breach the minimum public shareholding requirement.
Why it matters for counsel: Corporate and capital-markets advisers with listed clients weighing a Q3 or Q4 buyback should re-run the mechanics now: the open-market route is back on the table alongside tender-offer and book-building, but only under the new 15 per cent ceiling and minimum-public-shareholding guardrails, and anything structured before 1 August must be tested against the incoming regime rather than the 2018 rules. SEBI has also directed depositories to have the supporting operational framework in place by 1 August, so timing a launch around the switchover carries execution risk.
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Korea’s “July 7 Act” Is Live: Platforms Face Takedown Duties and Five-Times Punitive Damages
An amendment to Korea’s Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilisation and Information Protection took effect on 7 July, after a six-month grace period following promulgation on 6 January 2026. It empowers courts to award damages of up to five times the harm caused by false and manipulated information, and requires large online platforms with more than one million daily users to remove or block flagged content and take steps to prevent its further circulation, with flagged-content determinations routed through fact-checking bodies supported by the Korea Communications Commission’s transparency centre.
Why it matters for counsel: Technology, media and defamation counsel advising any platform, marketplace or user-generated-content service with meaningful Korean traffic need a content-takedown and notice-handling workflow in place now, because the obligation is in force and the punitive multiplier materially raises exposure on each contested item. Advisers should also flag the over-removal risk: the reliance on external fact-checkers and a five-times damages ceiling creates strong incentives to over-block, which itself carries reputational and contractual downside.
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Tranche 2 Lands: Law Firms and Accountants Are Now Reporting Entities, With a 29 July Deadline
From 1 July 2026 Australia’s expanded AML/CTF regime (“Tranche 2”) captures legal practitioners, accountants, conveyancers and real-estate professionals who provide designated services, bringing them into scope as reporting entities for the first time. AUSTRAC opened enrolment for newly regulated entities on 31 March 2026, and firms offering a designated service must enrol before 29 July, appoint an AML/CTF compliance officer and notify AUSTRAC of that appointment by the later of 29 July or 14 days after enrolment.
Why it matters for counsel: This one is aimed squarely at the profession itself: any Australian firm providing designated services has a hard 29 July enrolment date, plus a live obligation to stand up a documented risk-based AML/CTF programme and appoint a compliance officer. Partners who have not yet mapped whether their work triggers a designated service should run that assessment this fortnight, because non-enrolment by the deadline is itself a contravention.
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Singapore’s 1 July Employer Reset: Retirement Rises to 64 and the Local Qualifying Salary to S$1,600
From 1 July 2026 the statutory retirement age under the Retirement and Re-employment Act rose from 63 to 64 and the re-employment age from 68 to 69, meaning employers can no longer require an employee to retire before 64. The same date lifted the Local Qualifying Salary from S$1,550 to S$1,600 per month (S$10.67 per hour for part-timers), refreshed the COMPASS C1 salary benchmarks against 2025 survey data for Employment Pass renewals, and cut the Services-sector S Pass quota while raising the mid-skilled S Pass levy.
Why it matters for counsel: Employment counsel should have clients audit contracts and HR policies against the higher retirement and re-employment ages before renewals or exits proceed, since a forced retirement below 64 is now unlawful. Immigration and workforce advisers should re-run Work Permit and S Pass headcount and cost models against the new Local Qualifying Salary and the reduced Services-sector S Pass quota, and re-test pending Employment Pass renewals against the updated COMPASS benchmarks.
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Bangladesh’s Finance Act 2026 Locks Corporate and Personal Tax Rates for Five Years
The Finance Bill 2026 was passed by the Jatiya Sangsad on 29 June and took effect on 1 July for the 2026-27 fiscal year. It fixes corporate and personal income-tax rates for five assessment years (AY 2026-27 through AY 2030-31), reforms VAT compliance with quarterly rather than monthly returns, automatic eVAT enlistment and digital Mushak invoicing, and widens the VAT and customs net to fund a materially larger national budget.
Why it matters for counsel: Tax and corporate advisers to businesses operating in Bangladesh gain unusual rate certainty: a five-year lock on corporate and personal rates lets clients model effective tax with confidence through 2030-31, which is a live input for investment and holding-structure decisions now. The VAT shift to quarterly returns plus mandatory digital Mushak invoicing means compliance calendars and e-invoicing configurations should be updated this quarter to avoid early-cycle penalties.
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HONG KONG – FUNDS & VIRTUAL ASSETS
SFC Tightens the Rules on Authorised Funds Investing in Virtual Assets
The SFC’s new requirements for authorised funds investing in virtual assets, issued 27 May 2026 and circulating through the July commentary cycle, require any publicly offered fund holding more than 10 per cent of NAV in virtual assets to obtain SFC approval, prohibit fund-level leveraged VA exposure, and mandate cold-wallet custody with private keys held only in Hong Kong. Asset managers running or marketing VA-exposed funds into Hong Kong should re-paper mandates and custody arrangements against the 10 per cent approval trigger and the Hong Kong key-storage rule.
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SOUTH KOREA – DIGITAL ASSETS
Seoul Folds Digital Assets Into Sovereign Asset Management
On 15 July 2026 Seoul announced the National Asset Basic Act, embedding digital assets in sovereign asset management for the first time as part of the 2026 Second Half Economic Growth Strategy, which also set a 2027 pilot linking tokenised government bonds to the Bank of Korea’s CBDC. Digital-asset and financial-services advisers should track the enabling instruments, as state-level recognition reshapes custody, tax and institutional-holding questions for Korean clients.
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INDONESIA – TRADE & COMMODITIES
Indonesia Centralises Coal, Palm Oil and Ferroalloy Exports Through State-Owned Enterprises
Under Government Regulation No. 24 of 2026, in force since 1 June 2026, exporters of coal, palm oil (CPO) and ferroalloys are subject to a centralised export regime, with PT Danantara Sumberdaya Indonesia designated sole exporter from 1 January 2027 and all such exports to route through appointed state-owned enterprises by no later than 31 December 2026. Commodity, trade and arbitration counsel should audit existing offtake and export contracts for continuity, force-majeure and change-of-law exposure before the 31 December cut-over.
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PHILIPPINES – IMMIGRATION & EMPLOYMENT
Alien Employment Permit Processing Fully Centralised to the DOLE Central Office
DOLE Administrative Order No. 199, issued 8 June 2026 and effective 9 June, fully centralises Alien Employment Permit processing to the DOLE Central Office, with all regional offices ceasing to accept, process or issue new and renewal AEP applications. Employers of foreign nationals should redirect all pending and new AEP filings to the Central Office and rebuild timelines around the single-channel process.
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INDIA – INSOLVENCY
Supreme Court: Mere Settlement Talks Cannot Defer CIRP Admission
On 9 July 2026 the Supreme Court dismissed the suspended director’s appeal in the Parsvnath Developers matter, affirming revival of the corporate insolvency resolution process over a default of about Rs 452 crore, and holding that mere settlement talks cannot defer CIRP admission once debt and default are established. Restructuring and creditor-side counsel now have fresh apex authority that a failed or abandoned settlement does not shield a debtor from CIRP restoration, useful in resisting delay tactics.
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SRI LANKA – TAX
Inland Revenue Amendment Raises Capital Gains Tax and Makes TIN Verification Mandatory
The Inland Revenue (Amendment) Act No. 11 of 2026, published 5 June 2026, raises capital gains tax to 15 per cent for individuals and partnerships and 10 per cent for trusts, unit trusts, mutual funds and NGOs, introduces a 100 per cent enhanced capital allowance for depreciable-asset investment between US$250,000 and US$3 million, and makes TIN verification mandatory for specified transactions including opening bank accounts and land registration. Tax and transactional advisers should recompute disposal and structuring models against the higher CGT and build TIN checks into transaction workflows.
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AUSTRALIA – CONSUMER & SCAMS
Australia’s Scams Prevention Framework Begins Applying to Banks, Telcos and Platforms
From 1 July 2026 Australia’s Scams Prevention Framework began applying to banks, telecommunications providers and designated digital platforms, which must take reasonable steps to prevent, detect and disrupt scams, with AFCA now the authorised external dispute-resolution scheme for scam complaints; the SPF rules commence 1 September 2026 and the full enforceable obligations, with civil penalties up to A$50 million per contravention, apply from 31 March 2027. Financial-services, telco and platform counsel should begin gap-analysis against the framework now, since obligations phase in ahead of the March 2027 penalty regime.
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PAPUA NEW GUINEA – TECHNOLOGY
PNG Moves to Criminalise Malicious AI Use Under a Cybercrime Code Amendment
As reported on 21 July 2026, the PNG government confirmed plans to amend the Cybercrime Code Act to criminalise malicious AI use, including AI-generated sexually explicit material, child-exploitation content, fraudulent voice cloning, online scams and digital impersonation, with the amendments to be introduced when parliament returns in November 2026. Technology and media counsel in the region should monitor the draft, as it signals PNG’s alignment with the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime and a coming takedown and compliance regime.
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Member spotlight
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Joseph James Joaquino Jr
AJA Law · Philippines · Business
Managing Partner at AJA Law, advising technology companies on corporate and tax structuring, investment deals and regulatory compliance. He has published on tech-company structuring in the Philippines, covering CREATE MORE incentives and SEC compliance, which sits alongside this fortnight’s centralisation of Alien Employment Permit processing to the DOLE Central Office. Read their GLE profile.
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Peter Obrien
O’Brien Solicitors, Sydney · Australia · Civil Law
“If you’re here for principles, you’re in the wrong place. You might win on legal principles, but don’t think your morality will necessarily shine through in the judgment.”
On the reality of running civil litigation in Australia, the jurisdiction carrying this edition’s Tranche 2 AML/CTF and Scams Prevention Framework items, on a GLE Q&A. Watch their GLE Q&A.
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Siddharth Mahajan
Athena Legal Advocates & Solicitors, New Delhi · India · TMT
“India’s data-protection regime is significantly different from the EU GDPR. It is more consent-driven, more operational and obligatory, rather than an open-ended regime like GDPR.”
On India’s data-protection regime, from a practice in the jurisdiction behind this edition’s SEBI buyback and CIRP items, on a GLE Q&A. Watch their GLE Q&A.
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Shagun Badhwar
AZB & Partners · India · Corporate and Data Privacy
“It has to be a light-touch approach. You can’t heavily regulate an emerging technology sector, because you’re only going to hamper innovation.”
On calibrating regulation of an emerging sector, a corporate practice in the jurisdiction behind this edition’s SEBI buyback lead, on a GLE Q&A. Watch their GLE Q&A.
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Lim Tat
Aequitas Law LLP · Singapore · International Dispute Resolution
On forum selection, Lim Tat told a GLE roundtable that the question is often answered by looking for factors that let the Singapore courts seize jurisdiction.
A disputes practice in Singapore, the jurisdiction that reset its retirement, re-employment and work-pass thresholds on 1 July. Watch their GLE Q&A.
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What we’re tracking next
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India: SEBI’s open-market buyback regime and the depositories operational framework go live on 1 August; the under-15 per cent exchange-route cap and shortened timelines take effect, and the first buyback launches structured under the new rules are the near-term watch item. |
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Australia: the AUSTRAC Tranche 2 enrolment deadline falls on 29 July; law firms, accountants, conveyancers and real-estate professionals providing designated services must be enrolled and have notified their AML/CTF compliance officer, with an enforcement-posture signal expected from AUSTRAC shortly after the cut-off. |
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Australia: the Scams Prevention Framework rules commence on 1 September, crystallising sector obligations ahead of the 31 March 2027 penalty regime (civil penalties up to A$50 million per contravention); draft codes and rules are the near-term watch item for banks, telcos and platforms. |
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Open calls for commentary
Every edition of this briefing reaches senior lawyers across the global legal community, together with the in-house counsel and business decision-makers who turn to Global Law Experts for verified intelligence on the developments shaping their markets.
When you contribute, your reading of a development becomes the practitioner voice that audience reads, published under your name, your firm and your jurisdiction. We are sourcing 20 to 30 word practitioner takes on the following for the next edition. Reply to this email with your jurisdiction and your take, and we will attribute you by name, firm and country.
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INDIA – CAPITAL MARKETS: With SEBI’s open-market buyback route back but capped under 15 per cent from 1 August, what is the first structuring question listed clients should be asking before they commit to a Q3 buyback?
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AUSTRALIA – AML/CTF: For a small or mid-size firm working out whether it provides a “designated service” under Tranche 2, where is the line hardest to draw, and what is the most common misread ahead of the 29 July deadline?
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SOUTH KOREA – TECHNOLOGY: With the “July 7 Act” now live and its five-times damages multiplier in play, how should platforms with Korean users calibrate a takedown workflow without over-blocking themselves into their own liability?
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Contributors this fortnight
Joseph James Joaquino Jr, AJA Law, Philippines
Peter Obrien, O’Brien Solicitors, Australia
Siddharth Mahajan, Athena Legal Advocates & Solicitors, India
Shagun Badhwar, AZB & Partners, India
Lim Tat, Aequitas Law LLP, Singapore
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