Under the generous patronage of H.E. Dr. Majid bin Abdullah Al Qasabi, the Minster of Commerce and Investment, the Bankruptcy Commission organized the First Conference on Resolving Insolvencies (SCORI) on Monday and Tuesday 24-25 Sha'ban, 1440 AH/ 29-30 April 2019, in cooperation with the entities participating in enabling the bankruptcy law in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and with several the most prestigious specialized international organizations. The conference witnessed a high-level local and international presence that exceeded (1000) delegates to highlight the importance of the law for the economic system and encourage investment and the ease of doing business. The conference sought to achieve several objectives; the most important of which are the following:
- Highlighting the positive economic impact of the bankruptcy law.
- Building specialists' capacity and raising business community's awareness.
- Reviewing best practices and local and international case law.
In pursuit of these objectives, the conference papers covered (5) discussion sessions which were accompanied by several workshops and qualification programs as the following:
- The Economic Impact of Bankruptcy Law.
- The Financial Restructuring Procedure.
- The Judiciary Role in Bankruptcy Cases.
- Bankruptcy Commission's Functions.
- The Liquidation Cases.
Accompanying workshops and programs:
- Practical Application in Financial Restructuring.
- Practical Application in Liquidation.
- Valuation as an Enabling Tool in the Bankruptcy Law.
- The Legal Qualification Program for Bankruptcy Law.
The workshops and programs were enriched by the participation of (45) speakers of local and international experts and specialists from the United States, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Egypt, brotherly United Arab Emirates, and representatives from the World Bank and the United Nation Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL).
The conference, after posting its themes and topics on the website (www.scori.sa), has received extensive attention from the experts locally and internationally. Moreover, the conference sessions were enriched by the speakers' presentations which witnessed purposeful discussions and comments. The result of the conference was a set of recommendations as the following:
Continuously improving the business environment by conducting periodic reviews of the regulations relevant to the bankruptcy law, considering the most notable international experiences and applications as well as the specialists' and the business community's aspirations.
Intensifying awareness-raise campaigns designed for the business community and all the stakeholders relevant to enabling the bankruptcy law and its applications
Activating initiatives of early prevention against financial distresses.
Activating initiatives of resolving financial distress among debtors and creditors without seeking the court but rather by using alternative methods such as conciliation, mediation, and compromises.
Developing programs for e-integration among all the agencies involved in enabling the bankruptcy law including the Ministry of Justice, and the Bankruptcy Commission.
Building a technological environment that supports the process of collecting the data relevant to financial distresses, their impacts, financial information, the related claims in the court and all the supporting data. Analyzing and making maximum use of these data in developing and protecting the business environment against financial distresses.
Developing indicators to measure the performance of applying the bankruptcy law in coordination and cooperation with the relevant agencies and publishing periodic reports.
Designing building capacity programs for practitioners in bankruptcy including trustees, lawyers, auditors, and experts.
Highlighting the opportunities provided by the bankruptcy applications for the private sector in the fields of finance, investment, advisory services, and other professions in general.
In conclusion, the delegates would like to express their sincere gratitude to the conference establishers; the first one of which is H.E. Dr. Majid bin Abdullah Al Qasabi, the Minster of Commerce and Investment. Special thanks go to the working committees of this conference for the well preparation, high quality organization and hospitality.
