Executive Committee 2021 -2022

Louise Smyth

President

Louise Smyth joined Companies House in September 2017 as Chief Executive and Registrar for England and Wales.

Before joining Companies House Louise held a number of senior positions at the International Property Office (IPO), including director of IT, Director of People, Places & Services.

Louise went on to become Chief Operating Officer in 2014, responsible for Corporate Services: IT, People, Places and Services and Finance.

Helen Tang

Treasurer (from July 2022)

Before assuming the Post of the Registrar of Companies in July 2022, Miss Helen Tang served in various policy bureaux and departments of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, including the Home
and Youth Affairs Bureau, the former Home Affairs Bureau, the Government Logistics Department, the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau, the Labour and Welfare Bureau, the Department of Health, the former
Commerce, Industry and Technology Bureau, the former Information Technology and Broadcasting Bureau, the former Television and Entertainment Licensing Authority, the former Health and Welfare Branch, the former Civil Service Branch and the former City and New Territories Administration.

Martin Fidler Jones

Secretary

Martin Fidler Jones joined Companies House in 2021 as a Senior Policy Advisor following a decade in charity sector public affairs, policy and communications.

A fluent French speaker, Martin has also worked at the heart of Parliaments and their governments in Wales, the UK and the EU.

He holds an Honours degree in Economics and a Masters in International Relations, with a specialism in climate change politics.

Conductor Paul Masena

Executive Committee

Mr Conductor Paul Masena was appointed as  the inaugural Registrar General of CIPA in August 2013. He is charged with driving the strategic direction of the Authority and ensuring that CIPA delivers its mandate as per the Companies and Intellectual Property Authority Act, 2011.

Mr Masena joined the then Registrar of Companies and Intellectual Property Authority (ROCIP) in 1999 as a Commercial Officer and rose through the ranks to Commercial Officer – Head of Companies and Business Names (2001), Senior Commercial Officer – Head of Copyright Section (2003), Principal Commercial Officer – Head of Companies Division (2007), Deputy Registrar (2009), Registrar (2011),  until he become the Registrar General at the newly created parastatal (CIPA). He is credited with putting in place processes that significantly reduced the turn-around times for registering companies in Botswana, spearheading the amendments of the Companies Act, Copyright Act and the Industrial Property Act, and leading the transformation of ROCIP to an autonomous body. Mr Masena has also cemented CIPA’s relationship with international bodies such as the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), African Regional Intellectual Property Organisation (ARIPO) and the Corporate Registers Forum among others, ensuring that all CIPA activities are based on international standards.

A seasoned professional who has extensive experience in both Copyright and Industrial Property, Mr Masena was elected to chair ARIPO Administrative Council from 2009 to 2011. During his tenure as chairperson, ARIPO adopted the Swakopmund Protocol on Traditional Knowledge and Expressions of Folklore, approved a new organogram transforming ARIPO  into a more effective organisation and registered a surplus budget.

Mr Masena is a holder of a Master of Intellectual Property, Commerce and Technology, a Bachelor of Arts in Accounting and Economics and a Diploma in Trade Policy from the World Trade Organisation. He has also worked for the Ministry of Communications, Science and Technology, Botswana Export Development and Investment Promotion Agency (BEDIA) as well as the Trade & Investment Promotion Agency (TIPA).  He is currently a Board Member of Botswana Institute of Chartered Accountants.

Marija Boshkovska Jankovski

Executive Committee

Marija Boshkovska-Jankovski joined Central register of the Republic of Macedonia in August, 2017 as General Director of the Institution. As professional in business economics and financial accounting management, she has been involved in the implementation of numerous development projects – essential for the progress of the Central register.

The Central register is self-financed government institution, which is currently in a process of upgrading the existing solutions with a new comprehensive service model – covering all significant aspects that directly affect the quality of services.

Her vision for the Central register arises directly from the needs of the private sector and all service users (including foreign and domestic investors), and from the institutional need to access and share up-to-date information in order to increase the efficiency of their work.

Abdul Rasheed Purayil KP

Executive Committee

Abdul Rasheed KP works as Director, Companies Registration Office, Qatar Financial Centre, Doha, Qatar. Mr. Rasheed is a former officer of the central civil service in India,  and has officiated as Assistant Registrar of Companies and as Assistant Official Liquidator in India.

A lawyer by profession, Mr. Rasheed has worked with leading law firms in India and Qatar, prior to joining the QFC. His career also includes stints as a prosecutor in India’s federal investigation agency – the Central Bureau of Investigation; and in a senior position in the Indian banking arm of a global financial major.

He has published articles and spoken at international conferences on law, corporate governance and white-collar crimes; and some of his talks have been broadcasted. He is a member of the International Bar Association. His personal interest includes music, literature, and travel.

Mariyam Visam

2022 Conference Director and Executive Committee

Visam is the Registrar of businesses at the Ministry of Economic Development. Visam is leading the digitalization program of business registry services to modernize and increase accessibility to business services across the country. She also oversees FDI registrations and provides her expertise in formulating investment policies.

Visam is also a member of the Board of Directors of Capital Market Development Authority (CMDA).

Visam has over 15 years of experience in economic affairs and financial sector.

Visam also contributes to the academia by facilitating training programs, postgraduate courses in the areas of Entrepreneurship, Corporate Governance, Risk Management & Business Ethics.

Visam holds a Master’s Degree in Business Economics from the University of Queensland, Australia.

Karen Foat

Executive Member (August 2022 - current)

Karen is the Deputy Registrar of the Australian Business Register, and the Deputy Commissioner of the Australian Business Registry Services business line at the Australian Taxation Office, which is leading our organisation to be a leading tax, super and registry service.

Sanjai Raj

Executive Committee

Sanjai has 32 years public sector experience: Official Assignee, Group Manager Radio Spectrum Management and General Manager Consumer Protection & Standards.  Sanjai currently holds the position of General Manager Market Integrity with a portfolio that includes: Building Practitioner Licensing, Electrical Workers Licensing, Immigration Advisors Authority, Auctioneer Licensing, Business Registries, Radio Spectrum Management, Fuel Quality Monitoring, Legal Metrology, Motor Vehicle Trader Licensing, Criminal Proceeds – Integrity and Enforcement and the Insolvency and Trustee Service.

Sanjai holds the position of New Zealand Standards Executive and he is the Registrar for: Companies, Financial Service Providers, Building Societies, Friendly Societies and Credit Unions, Industrial and Provident Societies, Personal Property Securities and Unions.

Sanjai holds a Bachelor of Arts and an Masters in Public Administration.

Ong Khiaw Hong

Executive Committee

Mr Ong Khiaw Hong was appointed the Chief Executive of the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) on 1 Apr 2017. He also sits on several national committees including the Accounting Standards Council of Singapore and the Singapore Accountancy Commission. Internationally, he represents Singapore in the Executive Committee of the Corporate Registers Forum and on the Board of the International Forum of Independent Audit Regulators.

Mr Ong has over 30 years of experience in the corporate accounting and tax field spanning policy, operations, regulations and corporate governance. Prior to joining ACRA, Mr Ong was the Deputy Commissioner (Corporate & Services) at the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). He started his career in the Administrative Service, serving in the Education and Defence ministries.

Mr Ong obtained his Bachelor of Commerce and Administration (Honours) from the Victoria University of Wellington on a Colombo Plan Scholarship. He holds a Master in Public Administration from the Harvard University Kennedy School.  He was conferred the Public Service Administration Medal (Gold) in 2010.

Michelle Crosby

Executive Committee (stepped down August 2022)

Michelle Crosby is the Deputy Commissioner of the Australian Business Registry Services business line at the Australian Taxation Office and the Deputy Registrar of the Australian Business Register. Michelle is leading a transformational program of work across multiple government agencies to modernise business registers and introduce director identification numbers.

Michelle has extensive experience across both the private and public sectors, including senior roles in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet and the Department of Human Services.

Michelle holds a Master of Business Administration, a Master of Human Resource Management and a Bachelor of Business (Accounting). In 2017, Michelle completed the Executive Fellows Program through the Australia and New Zealand School of Government.

With the move of the Australian business registers from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission to the ATO in 2021, Michelle assumes the leadership role for the registers for Australia.