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Among the topics discussed were the importance of transparency and accountability in corporate governance, the role of corporate social responsibility in building trust with stakeholders and the importance of effective communication and stakeholder engagement in building trust.Experts also debated the board%u2019s role in identifying emerging trends and implementing best practices in technology, mitigating technology-related risks through robust measures and adopting a hybrid model to enhance shareholder participation in Closing the Digital Divide %u2013 What Should Directors Think About Technology?Participants also attended two virtual Corporate Governance Forums - Optimising Investor Relations: Strengthening Communication Strategies for Success and The Dilemma for Company Good Governance %u2013 Fraud the Challenge? New initiatives %u2013 reaching out to heartlanders and studentsLooking ahead, SIAS is working on ways to partner with the Singapore Exchange to take investing into the heartlands in order to encourage more individuals to take their first investing steps.It is SIAS%u2019s view that too many people are keeping the majority of their savings in savings accounts which earn minimal interest, thus resulting in inflation eroding the purchasing power of those funds.Many are probably too afraid to put money into financial products, but it is our view that with proper education, guidance and encouragement, these heartlanders can be persuaded to invest correctly and in time, will find themselves better off financially.SIAS will also be engaging and reaching out to more students from tertiary institutions to help them learn how to invest properly and to guide them over their investment journey over their various life stages.The Global Investment OutlookAs this is being written in September, the US Federal Reserve has just cut its interest rates by 50 basis points, the first reduction in a little over four years.Lower interest rates amidst decent economic growth has given rise to strong hopes that the US economy will enjoy a %u201csoft landing%u2019%u2019 which in turn has pushed its major stock market indices to several all-time highs.This in turn has enabled the Straits Times Index in mid-September to reach several 17-year highs, driven mainly by the banks and Singtel. However, most experts reckon that as interest rates trend downwards, bonds and Real Estate Investment Trusts should then benefit.Also in Sep, authorities in China have just unveiled a host of stimulus measures such as lower bank reserve ratio requirements whilst cutting interest rates for existing mortgages and lowering minimum down payments on all types of homes to 15%. In response, China stocks have also taken off.625TH ANNUAL REPORT | 2023 - 2024