Political pressures overshadow efforts to achieve transparency
Ever since Poland began its transition to a market economy more than a decade ago, the country has been “recognized for its efforts to establish a first-class regulatory structure that would meet the threshold of those in industrial countries,” finds the Institute of International Finance. Progress in corporate governance, however, has not prevented significant problems arising, mostly due to shortcomings in enforcement and the high percentage of businesses with a majority owner. Several corruption scandals in large Polish firms are currently the subject of parliamentary debates and prosecution investigations.
Today, leading listed Polish companies strive to comply with the Corporate Governance Code of Good Practice based on OECD recommendations, but the degree of transparency is still insufficient. The qualification criteria for independent non-executive directors are not clearly defined by all listed companies, and in companies where the State Treasury is a shareholder, political pressures may still be visible. “Public companies must install stronger mechanisms of information safety to enable the investor community to make short-term buy and sell decisions based on publicly available data,” says Brunon Bartkiewicz, President and CEO of ING BSK, a Polish affiliate of the Dutch ING Group.
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