Compliance Promotion Initiatives

In accordance with the spirit of the UN Global Compact, Sysmex undertakes thorough efforts to prevent bribery, in line with Principle 10, which states: “Businesses should work against corruption in all its forms, including extortion and bribery.”
For risk assessments conducted periodically by the Internal Control Committee, compliance violations, including acts of corruption, are recognized as risks, and we are working to reduce them. Additionally, the “Corruption and Bribery” Chapter of the Global Compliance Code clearly prohibits acts of corruption, and the global anti-bribery regulations applicable to all Group companies cover topics such as banned activities, due diligence, the provision of education, and management systems. In these ways, we promote initiatives for Group-wide compliance.

Sysmex has increased opportunities for collaboration with medical institutions and professionals at every stage of its operations through research and development, production, sales, and services and support. Transactions with them must be conducted with high ethical standards. The “Transparency in Relationships with Medical Professionals and Medical Institutions” Chapter of the Global Compliance Code stipulates that appropriate relationships with medical professionals and medical institutions must be established and maintained and transparency in these relationships must be ensured.
In Japan, Sysmex Corporation, a member of the Japan Association of Clinical Reagents Industries, concurs with the philosophy outlined in the association’s “Guidelines on Transparency of Relationships between Corporate Activities and Medical Institutions” and discloses information regarding funding to medical institutions.
Countries other than Japan have implemented laws that require companies to ensure transparency in their relations with medical institutions (“Sunshine Acts”) and regulations for the medical device industry. In compliance with these laws and regulations, the Sysmex Group reports to government authorities on funding to medical institutions and industry organizations in relevant countries and regions, as follows:

In the “Appropriate Research and Development Activities” Chapter of the Global Compliance Code, Sysmex stipulates that it must be engaged in appropriate research and development activities while protecting the dignity and human rights of test subjects and complying with relevant laws, regulations, and ethical guidelines in the relevant countries and regions. In accordance with these stipulations, Sysmex conducts R&D activities with high ethical standards. Sysmex has established the “Group Ethics Regulations on Clinical Research and Development” and a Research Ethics Examination Committee, which includes outside members, including legal and scientific experts, to review research content. The list of committee members and deliberation results are disclosed on our website to ensure transparency.

In accordance with the “Appropriate Research and Development Activities” Chapter of the Global Compliance Code, Sysmex complies with applicable laws and regulations concerning animal welfare in each country and region, minimizes the use of animal experiments by using of alternative methods when available, and takes care to alleviate pain when conducting animal experiments. We conduct animal experiments in line with internal regulations that conform to public guidelines. Our Testing Control Committee rigorously considers testing plans to ensure regulatory conformance.
Laws and guidelines observed by Sysmex: Act on Welfare and Management of Animals (Ministry of the Environment), Standards Relating to the Care and Management of Laboratory Animals and Relief of Pain (Ministry of the Environment), Basic Policies for the Conduct of Animal Experiments in Institutions Regulated by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare), and Guidelines for Proper Conduct of Animal Experiments (Science Council of Japan)

In order to regulate our global promotional activities, we have included an ethics code for marketing in the “Anti-monopoly and Anti-competitive Behavior” Chapter of the Global Compliance Code. We have also established Global Regulations for Compliance with Competition Laws. Additionally, we provide guidance on competition laws in our global compliance training.
We have formulated the Sysmex Promotion Code for activities in Japan, and in fiscal 2022, we held promotion code-based online training sessions for employees of sales divisions, which included a study of specific cases of misconduct. We also implemented training for managers and e-learning for general employees.

Sysmex has established a “Tax Strategy” in the Global Compliance Code with the aim of increasing tax-related transparency. In the text setting forth the strategy, Sysmex stipulates that it will comply with the OECD Transfer Pricing Guideline and all tax laws in the countries and regions in which it conducts business. It will not transfer created value to lower tax jurisdictions only to gain a tax advantage.
In addition, we disclose Group payments of taxes in our securities reports and other documents, as well as the reasons for any discrepancies from relevant statutory tax rates.

In the “Intellectual Property” Chapter of the Global Compliance Code, Sysmex stipulates that all the officers and employees of the Group must respect the intellectual property of third parties as much as the Group’s intellectual property, and handle such intellectual property appropriately. We ensure that all the officers and employees are well informed of this rule and strictly comply with it. When developing new products, Intellectual Property, R&D, and Business Development Department members conduct and discuss global patent reviews for each new project.

In the “Security Trade” Chapter of the Global Compliance Code, Sysmex stipulates that it will comply with the export laws and regulations of individual countries and regions and will not be engaged in transactions likely to impede the maintenance of international peace and safety. Sysmex has established the Security Trade Control Committee, which is under the direct control of the president, to prevent illegal exports. It has also assigned people at overseas regional headquarters to oversee security trade control, bolstering our global operational structure. In addition, it provides annual basic e-learning for all employees, as well as lectures on the latest world affairs and laws and regulations, as well as a variety of other types of training, to raise awareness of security trade control.