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In Asia-Pacific

Malaysia: Malaysian Federal Court held online platform provider liable for third party content

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On 19 February 2021, the majority of the Malaysian Federal Court (“Federal Court”) delivered its much-anticipated judgment in Peguam Negara Malaysia v Mkini Dotcom Sdn Bhd and Another [2020] 4 MLJ 791 in respect of the allegation of contempt of court by way of comments posted by subscribers and readers on the Malaysiakini news portal on 9 June 2020.

The Federal Court in its majority decision held that Malaysiakini, an online platform provider, is liable  for third party comments which are offensive and inappropriate even though they had no knowledge of the same until notified and where the impugned comments were then promptly removed. Further, compliance with the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Content Code (“Content Code”) did not shield Malaysiakini from liability. 

While the matter related to an offence of criminal contempt, the Federal Court’s decision is likely to impact and change the landscape of liability for online platform providers in Malaysia with regard to third party content. 

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In Asia-Pacific

Malaysia: Sungai Udang Waste-to-Energy Project RFP

by , and 4 Mins Read

The Malaysian Ministry of Housing and Local Government has announced that the request for proposal (RFP) for a waste-to-energy project in Sungai Udang, Malacca (“WtE Project”) will be released on 18 February 2021. Consistent with the previous RFP for the waste-to-energy project located in Bukit Payong that was issued in August 2020, the WtE Project will be carried out on a public-private partnership basis. We understand the WtE Project is near to a current sanitary landfill and the driver is to reduce waste disposal rate at the landfill.

The WtE Project is the second of the six proposed waste-to-energy projects that the federal government of Malaysia is planning to develop by 2021.

In Asia-Pacific

Malaysia: The UK Business Interruption Insurance Test Case

by , and 10 Mins Read

On 15 January 2021, the UK Supreme Court (“Supreme Court”) delivered its much-anticipated judgment in The Financial Conduct Authority v Arch Insurance (UK) Limited and Others [2021] UKSC 1 in respect of a representative sample of business interruption property insurance (“Business Interruption”) policies. 

In light of the decision by the Supreme Court to construe the relevant clauses broadly, we anticipate that there will be an increase in claims by policyholders for losses resulting from business interruptions caused by COVID-19 pandemic. 

Malaysian insurers are encouraged to revisit their existing Business Interruption policies, to consider how the existing policy wordings may be impacted by the judgment, and if needed, consider revising and refining their policies.

In Asia-Pacific

Malaysia: Penalty for failure to furnish transfer pricing documentation

by and 4 Mins Read

The Malaysian Finance Act 2020 introduced, among others, several legislative changes to the Malaysian Income Tax Act 1967 (ITA) in respect of transfer pricing. Notably, a penalty provision was introduced. Effective 1 January 2021, taxpayers (where applicable) who fail to furnish transfer pricing documentation (TPD) upon the Malaysian Inland Revenue Board’s (MIRB’s) request will be subject to a fine ranging from RM 20,000 to RM 100,000 and / or imprisonment.

Consistent with this, the MIRB has also revised the Transfer Pricing Guidelines 2012 to reduce the time given to taxpayers to furnish their TPD from 30 days to 14 days.

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In Asia-Pacific

Malaysia: The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) – a special focus on e-commerce

by and 3 Mins Read

After almost a decade of negotiations, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement was signed on 15 November 2020 by 10 ASEAN member states, along with Australia, China, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea.

The RCEP is the largest regional free trade agreement outside the WTO, and its member states account for approximately 30% of the world’s gross domestic product (USD 26.3 trillion) and 30% of the world’s population (2.3 billion). Its overarching aim is to establish a modern, comprehensive and mutually beneficial economic partnership that brings together countries with diverse levels of development, fuels regional value chains and promotes international trade and investment.

The agreement comprises 20 chapters with specific provisions covering, amongst other things, e-commerce, trade in goods, trade in services, investment, competition and intellectual property. In this Client Alert, we summarize the key highlights of the e-commerce chapter of the RCEP Agreement.

In Asia-Pacific

International: Fintech Legal Accelerator: Cracking the Legal Code

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In this recording of our introductory workshop, Baker McKenzie FinTech Legal Accelerator: Cracking the Legal Code, held as part of the Hong Kong FinTech Week 2020, our lawyers across Asia Pacific give an overview of key fintech issues that start-ups or scale-ups need to know as they grow and expand…

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In Asia-Pacific

Malaysia: Impact of COVID-19 on Advance Pricing Arrangements in Malaysia

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The pandemic-afflicted economic distress has given rise to significant uncertainty and potentially an increase in tax audits. Malaysia has had advance pricing arrangement (“APA”) rules since 2012. APAs provide certainty in terms of transfer pricing risk management on a prospective basis.

Recently, the Malaysian Inland Revenue Board (“MIRB”) has issued a set of guidance in the form of frequently asked questions (“FAQ”) with respect to the treatment of APAs in the COVID-19 pandemic landscape. We are pleased to share the key takeaways from the FAQ on APA Treatment below.

In AML & Financial Services Regulatory

Asia Pacific Insurance Newsletter October 2020

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Read publication Welcome to the 20th edition of the Asia Pacific Insurance Newsletter. This edition covers insights, pertinent insurance-specific legal issues and significant regulatory developments in Australia, China/Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan and Vietnam. If you missed earlier editions of this newsletter, you can access our newsletter…

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