IOSCO announced the publishing of its Crypto-Asset Roadmap for 2022-2023

By Joy Dumasia

IOSCO has published its Crypto-Asset Roadmap for 2022-2023, which sets out its regulatory policy agenda and work program for the sector over the next 12 to 24 months. The IOSCO Board-level Fintech Taskforce (FTF), established in March this year, has been mandated to develop, oversee, deliver, and implement IOSCO’s regulatory agenda for FinTech and crypto-assets.

The FTF will prioritise policy-focused work on crypto-asset markets and activities in its initial 12 to 24 months of operation while continuing to monitor market developments associated with broader FinTech-related trends and innovation. The FTF has set up two workstreams focusing on Crypto and Digital Assets (CDA) and Decentralised Finance (DeFi). Each workstream aims to publish a report with policy recommendations by the end of 2023.         

The FTF is engaging with the FSB and its relevant workstreams to coordinate on issues relating to financial stability, particularly where they relate to IOSCO and its members’ capital market mandates.

While investors’ interest for crypto assets grew with the introduction of new products and markets linked to them, recent market turmoil has also resulted in significant investor losses due to inadequate regulatory protection and market safeguards. For this reason, the current FTF work primarily focuses on analysing and responding to market integrity and investor protection concerns.

Ashley Alder, IOSCO Chair and Chief Executive Officer of the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong, said: “IOSCO’s ambitious roadmap will deliver the global policies needed by regulators to address the considerable risks arising from a rapidly developing, complex and opaque crypto-asset ecosystem whilst preserving the societal benefits of innovation.”

Tuang Lee Lim, Assistant Managing Director (Capital Markets) of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and Chair of the FTF, said: “The cross-border nature of crypto assets and markets calls for a robust set of policy recommendations to support consistent and coordinated regulatory action. In carrying out its work, the IOSCO Fintech Task Force will collaborate closely with other international bodies to address the priority areas of market integrity and investor protection, as well as their implications for financial stability.”