Auditing and accounting firms are in the throes of a major overhaul of their roles and responsibilities, following the enactment of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act - America's legislative response to the collapse of the energy giant Enron.
Even though the act refers specifically to auditing and accounting services provided to companies in the United States, Sarbanes-Oxley is relevant to Hong Kong and mainland corporations: any local company that already has securities listed in the US, a joint venture with an American firm, a US subsidiary, or wishes to raise cash on US markets in the future, must examine whether they fall under the act's purview.
Stephen Ducker, director of global risk management solutions at PricewaterhouseCoopers in Hong Kong, believes his clients are starting to realise what the act means to their business.
'They, like us, are still in the 'understanding' phase,' Mr Ducker says. 'Corporate clients are looking at the size of the gap between what they are doing now and what the act tells them to do.'
He believes that about 100 listed companies in Hong Kong will be directly affected by the act's implementation, as well as scores more multinationals operating on the mainland - on their own or in joint venture with Chinese partners.
'Local companies interested in best practice will also pay close attention to the changes and see what it would take to be compliant,' Mr Ducker adds.