King Report On
Corporate Governance
The King Report on Corporate Governance
King III - CODE AND PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICES
The revised Code of and Report on Governance Principles for South Africa (King III) were released on 1 September 2009, with an effective date of 1 March 2010. SAICA supports the principles embodied in the Code and has been an active participant on the King Committee. Numerous CAs(SA) were also closely involved in the process in various capacities.
SAICA is particularly pleased with the enhanced focus on Sustainability and the overall risk-centric approach embraced by King III.
The revision was necessitated by the Companies Act, 2008, which has incorporated many of the principles contained in King II. Both of these developments will continue to position South Africa at the forefront of good governance on the international stage.
While King III has no legal backing, except as adopted by the JSE Listings Requirements, SAICA encourages ALL entities to apply the principles insofar as is practicable.
For a summary of changes from King II to King III
Download (142kb PDF)
For an Executive Guide to King III please find summaries from the following Audit firms: Ernst & Young, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Deloitte and KPMG.
Ernst and Young
Download (1 Mb PDF)
PricewaterhouseCoopers
Download (682kb PDF)
Deloitte
Download (87kb PDF)
KPMG
Download (2.5Mb PDF)
For the King III Code
Click here
For the King III Report
Click here
Please note that copyright for King III subsists with the Institute of Directors, thus SAICA is unable to load the documents directly onto this website.
The Chapters of King III are:
- Ethical leadership and corporate citizenship
- Boards and directors
- Audit committees
- The governance of risk
- The governance of information technology
- Compliance with laws, rules , codes and standards
- Internal audit
- Governing stakeholder relationships
- Integrated reporting and disclosure
King II
In 2002 the second King Report on Corporate Governance was published. It contains a Code of Corporate Practices and Conduct. Although voluntary, the Johannesburg Securities Exchange has requested listed companies to comply with the King Report recommendations or to explain their level of non-compliance.
This report applies only to certain categories of business enterprises which are:
- Companies listed on the JSE
- Banks, financial and insurance entities
- Public sector enterprises governed by the Public Finance Management Act and the Municipal Finance Management Act.
It refers to seven characteristics of good corporate governance:
Discipline - a commitment to behaviour that is universally recognised and accepted as correct and proper.
Transparency - the ease with which an outsider is able to analyse a company's actions.
Independence - the mechanisms to avoid or manage conflict.
Accountability - the existence of mechanisms to ensure accountability.
Responsibility - processes that allow for corrective action and acting responsibly towards all stakeholders.
Fairness - balancing competing interests.
Social Responsibility - being aware of and responding to social issues.
Summary of King II
Download in Adobe Acrobat (60KB)
King I
In 1992 the King Committee on Corporate Governance was formed in South Africa, and, in line with international thinking, considered corporate governance from a South African perspective.
The result was the King Report 1994, which marked the institutionalisation of corporate governance in South Africa. It aimed to promote corporate governance in South Africa and established recommended standards of conduct for boards and directors of listed companies, banks, and certain state-owned enterprises, with an emphasis on the need for companies to become a responsible part of the societies in which they operate. King I advocated an integrated approach to good governance, taking into account stakeholder interests and encouraging the practice of good financial, social, ethical and environmental practice.
Copyright: IoD