RHT Holdings Chief Executive Officer Jayaprakash Jagateesan was quoted in The Business Times’ Views From The Top article titled “Clean business or no business”.

The article was first published on 15 January 2018.

‘Clean business or no business’

Monday, January 15, 2018

THIS WEEK’S TOPIC: How should Singapore firms do business in graft-prone markets?

Jayaprakash Jagateesan
Chief Executive Officer
RHT Holdings Pte Ltd

CORPORATES have an intrinsic responsibility governed by their code of ethics towards their staff, partners and customers.

Management also plays an active role in ensuring governance and audit measures are set in place to prevent the occurrence of any corruption. Market leadership and trust focused on ethical business practices should never be compromised for short-term gains even if this may entail the loss of bigger deals.

From a global economic standpoint, bribery makes up a staggering US$1.5 trillion to US$2.5 trillion annually, according to a study in 2016. Some view bribery as a necessary evil in order to compete for business but this soon becomes a vicious cycle that entangles the corporates for a sustained period.

The damage to reputation that results may take decades to rebuild or, in some cases, be beyond repair.