Singapore is strengthening the practical knowledge expected of company directors. On 28 August 2026, the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) and the Singapore Institute of Directors (SID) announced a partnership to develop an enhanced Company Director Fundamentals (CDF) programme. The initiative is designed to help current and aspiring directors understand their legal, fiduciary and governance responsibilities and apply them in real business situations.
The announcement matters beyond listed-company boardrooms. ACRA and SID have designed the programme for directors serving companies with different ownership structures, sizes and growth stages. That makes it relevant to founders, executive directors, non-executive directors, nominee directors and foreign business owners.
Registration is scheduled to open in October 2026, with access to the learning modules following later. Here is what businesses should know about the programme, how it fits into Singapore’s wider governance framework and what directors can do now to prepare.
ACRA and SID signed a Memorandum of Understanding to jointly develop the refreshed CDF programme. According to the official ACRA announcement on the director training partnership, the objective is to make practical governance training more accessible and raise baseline governance capabilities across Singapore’s corporate community.
The programme is supported by RSM Singapore and Rajah & Tann Singapore LLP. A working group comprising the Central Provident Fund Board, the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore and the Workplace Safety and Health Council will support its development and periodic review. This reflects the way directorship extends across company law, taxation, workplace safety, financial oversight and organisational risk.
SID, Singapore’s national association for company directors, will deliver the programme. Directors who want to continue beyond the fundamentals may also pursue SID’s broader professional development and accreditation pathways.
Registration for the Company Director Fundamentals programme is expected to open in October 2026. Access to the modules will follow later, according to the Singapore Institute of Directors’ programme announcement.
Each module is designed to take approximately 15 to 20 minutes. This bite-sized, self-paced format should make the programme accessible to directors who need practical training without committing to lengthy classroom sessions.
The programme contains ten modules divided into two phases: CDF 101 and CDF 201.
CDF 101 consists of six complimentary modules jointly developed by ACRA and SID:
These topics address areas every director should understand, regardless of company type. Directors need to know whose interests they must protect, how conflicts should be managed and how to interrogate financial and tax information.
Participants who complete CDF 101 will receive a digital Certificate of Completion jointly issued by ACRA and SID.
CDF 201 builds on the foundation through four paid modules developed by SID:
The second phase moves from baseline responsibilities to board effectiveness and long-term stewardship. Directors must assess proposals, understand corporate actions, balance stakeholder considerations and guide performance without taking over management’s operational role.
Participants who complete CDF 201 will also receive a digital Certificate of Completion. Completion of all ten modules provides a structured grounding in both compliance and board-level decision-making.
Technology, artificial intelligence, cyber threats, sustainability disclosures, supply-chain disruption and geopolitical uncertainty can all affect strategy and enterprise value. Regulators and stakeholders expect directors to exercise informed judgement and meaningful oversight.
In her opening address at the SID Directors Conference 2026, Second Minister for Finance and National Development Indranee Rajah described climate change as a core business risk that can affect physical assets, operations, supply chains, financing and long-term business models. The official conference address published by ACRA emphasised that strong fundamentals become even more important when the operating environment is uncertain.
This is also consistent with Singapore’s broader governance approach. The SGX Code of Corporate Governance states that a board has a dual role: setting the company’s strategic direction and determining its approach to governance. For listed companies, the Code also provides that directors should understand the company’s business and their directorship duties, while receiving opportunities to develop and maintain their skills and knowledge.
Although the Code applies specifically to listed companies on a comply-or-explain basis, its emphasis on accountability, informed decision-making and continuing development offers a useful benchmark for private companies as well.
The August 2026 announcements present CDF as an accessible capability-building programme for current and aspiring directors; they do not state that every director of every Singapore company must complete it. Businesses should therefore distinguish the CDF programme from statutory duties under the Companies Act and from specific mandatory training rules that apply to certain directors of listed issuers.
For example, SGX rules require a director with no prior experience as a director of an issuer listed on the Exchange to undergo prescribed training, subject to limited exceptions based on relevant experience. The current SGX Practice Note on training for first-time directors lists approved programmes and explains the assessment and disclosure requirements. The practice note was amended on 6 February 2026.
CDF should not automatically be treated as a substitute for any SGX-mandated course or sector-specific training. A listed issuer should check the applicable listing rules and approved course list before deciding how a new director will satisfy mandatory training requirements.
For other companies, the absence of a universal mandate does not make director education unimportant. Training can help directors identify issues, ask better questions and document informed decisions.
No certificate replaces a director’s legal responsibility. Under section 157 of the Companies Act, a director must act honestly and use reasonable diligence. ACRA’s enforcement approach confirms that serious fiduciary breaches may attract investigation and enforcement.
Directors must exercise their powers for proper purposes and act in the interests of the company. This requires independent judgement. A director should not simply approve a founder’s, shareholder’s or parent company’s instructions without considering the interests of the Singapore company they serve.
Potential conflicts should be identified early, disclosed appropriately and managed through a defensible process. Depending on the facts and the company’s constitution, this may involve abstaining from discussion or voting, obtaining approval, recording the disclosure and considering whether independent advice is needed.
Delegation does not mean disengagement. Directors should review timely information, question unusual transactions, monitor financial health and follow up on red flags.
Directors should understand the company’s financial position well enough to evaluate cash flow, solvency, performance, tax exposure and the reliability of reporting. ACRA’s guide to managing a company identifies annual returns, tax filings, company registers and other ongoing requirements that businesses must manage.
A professional Singapore corporate secretary service can coordinate deadlines, resolutions, statutory registers and regulatory filings. However, directors should still review key documents and remain actively involved in decisions reserved for the board.
The new CDF programme arrives after several regulatory developments that make accurate records and capable oversight increasingly important.
Changes effective from 16 June 2025 strengthened transparency requirements for companies and LLPs. New entities must maintain controller information from incorporation, controller particulars must be verified annually, and ACRA maintains central registers of nominee directors and nominee shareholders. ACRA’s announcement on the 2025 transparency requirements explains the framework.
Separately, the Corporate Service Providers Act 2024 took effect on 9 June 2025. It requires corporate service providers to register with ACRA, comply with new obligations and vet nominee directors. These changes reinforce an important principle: a nominee directorship is not a ceremonial name-lending arrangement. A nominee director remains a director and carries legal responsibilities.
Foreign founders who need a locally resident director should therefore work with a credible provider and maintain transparent governance arrangements. ATHR’s nominee director and corporate compliance support is provided alongside corporate secretarial and accounting services, helping connect the resident-director requirement with the company’s wider compliance framework.
Sustainability is increasingly a board-level risk. ACRA’s sustainability reporting and assurance overview states that listed companies and large non-listed companies are required to comply from FY2025 and FY2030 respectively, subject to detailed requirements.
Not every SME must issue the same sustainability disclosures. Nevertheless, directors may increasingly face ESG-related questions from customers, investors, banks, supply-chain partners and employees. The CDF 201 module on the ESG case for business is therefore relevant even where a company is not yet directly within a mandatory reporting category.
Businesses do not need to wait until October 2026 to improve board readiness. A practical preparation plan can begin now.
Map each director’s experience against the CDF topics. A finance-experienced director may still need deeper knowledge of conflicts, tax compliance or ESG. A founder-director who knows the business intimately may need more guidance on board process and fiduciary duties.
Confirm that the company’s registers, officer details, annual return status, tax filings and board records are current. Pay particular attention to controller and nominee information following the 2025 transparency reforms. ATHR’s accounting and tax services can help businesses maintain reliable financial records and meet recurring reporting obligations.
Minutes should record what the board considered, material questions, disclosed conflicts and decisions. Board papers should arrive early enough and contain the information needed for informed decisions.
Document which matters require board approval and which can be decided by management. Clear authority limits reduce ambiguity, support accountability and help directors focus on issues that materially affect risk, capital and strategy.
CDF offers a foundation, not the end of director development. Revisit training needs when the company enters a new market, raises capital, adopts significant technology or faces new reporting requirements.
The programme is relevant to current and aspiring directors, including founders, executive and non-executive directors, nominee directors and foreign directors who want to understand Singapore’s governance environment. Its structure is intended to support directors across companies of different sizes, ownership models and growth stages.
CDF 101 comprises six complimentary modules. CDF 201 comprises four paid modules. The official announcements available as at 4 September 2026 do not state the fee for CDF 201, so prospective participants should check SID’s registration information when enrolment opens.
Each of the ten modules takes approximately 15 to 20 minutes. Completing all modules would therefore involve roughly 150 to 200 minutes of module time, although participants may need additional time for registration, reflection or related materials.
No. Training can improve knowledge, but a certificate does not transfer or eliminate a director’s legal responsibilities. Directors must apply what they learn, remain informed, exercise independent judgement and ensure that decisions and compliance actions are properly documented.
The ACRA–SID partnership sends a clear message: capable directors and sound governance are central to Singapore’s trusted business environment. Training provides the knowledge, but companies also need dependable systems that turn board decisions into accurate records, timely filings and compliant day-to-day operations.
ATHR Corporate Services helps startups, SMEs, foreign founders and established businesses manage their Singapore corporate obligations.
Director education and professional compliance support serve different purposes, but they work best together. Directors retain responsibility for the company’s decisions, while an experienced corporate services team helps ensure those decisions are properly documented and followed through.
To review your current governance setup or prepare your company for its next stage of growth, contact ATHR for tailored corporate support.
Disclaimer: This article is intended for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax, financial or professional advice. Regulations and programme details may change, so readers should consult the relevant authorities or a qualified professional for advice specific to their circumstances.
The ATHR Content Team is a group of professional writers from Singapore and the Philippines, committed to delivering informative, practical, and engaging content for business owners across Southeast Asia.
