The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in a statement issued Tuesday said it is now requiring applicants to use its SEC Zuper Easy Registration Online (SEC ZERO) in registering new companies.
The process completely transfers the application registration to an online and paperless registration process using the portals Electronic Simplified Processing of Application for Registration of Company (eSPARC) and One Day Submission and E-registration of Companies (OneSEC).
Through these, applicants for company registration no longer have to submit hard copies of physically signed or notarized registration documents, the SEC said.
SEC ZERO is an application under eSPARC that eliminates the need for physical signatures and notarization as well as the submission of hard copies of registration documents.
“The system is integrated with the Electronic SEC User Registration Environment (eSECURE), which (grants) credentials (to) users before they can access online services of the SEC, and the Electronic Submission Authentication Portal (eSAP), which makes use of one-time passwords (OTPs) to electronically authenticate SEC-required documents, in lieu of conventional paper-based signatures,” the SEC said.
Launched in July 2024 as part of the SEC’s third wave of digital initiatives, SEC ZERO has since facilitated the registration of a total of 1,874 companies.
“SEC ZERO exemplifies our commitment to digitalization and sustainability, making setting up a business easier and faster than ever. By allowing companies to authenticate their registration documents online, company registration can now be done anytime and anywhere,” said Emilio Aquino, SEC chairman.
“The credentialing process through eSECURE, plus authentication through eSAP, further enables us to filter out scheming individuals wanting to use the corporate vehicle to defraud the public. With this, those registering corporations are identified and can be held accountable, if need be,” Aquino said.
To formalize the process, the SEC on April 4 issued Memorandum Circular No. 3 (MC 3), Series of 2024 that provides the guidelines.
Under the guidelines, all domestic stock corporations, excluding lending and financing companies, shall be processed through SEC ZERO starting on April 7, including corporations fully owned by Filipinos or those with foreign equity.
“Meanwhile, all Filipino domestic stock corporations may be processed using OneSEC,” the SEC said.
Lending companies, financing companies and foreign corporations will use the regular processing under eSPARC for three months after the effectivity of MC 3.
“Thereafter, the mandatory use of SEC ZERO shall apply to all types of corporations,” the SEC added.
