Policy-makers and practitioners increasingly recognise the role of company law as a means to enhance the functioning of the business sector. Increased attention is therefore given to the design of company law from the perspective of:

• improving corporate competitiveness;
• ensuring access to human and financial capital;
• promoting entrepreneurial incentives, and
• improving capital allocation.

In recent years, a majority of OECD countries have launched initiatives with a more or less explicit aim to analyse, assess or review present legislation from these four perspectives.

In addition to specific national and economic concerns, recent company law initiatives have also come to consider the implications of more general trends, such as the internationalisation of product and capital markets, the emergence of knowledge intensive industries and changes in corporate asset structures and corporate finance.

Related aspects that have come to the forefront are the increased attention given to corporate governance and the government's role as owner of corporate assets .

To promote and further inform this policy discussion the OECD is following developments in member countries, gathering information and facilitating information sharing among senior policy-makers.