Global Regulator & Central Bank News Roundup

New Zealand's Financial Markets Authority has published a submissions report on tokenisation in New Zealand’s financial markets, summarising feedback on its September 2025 discussion paper and setting out its response. The report frames regulatory fragmentation and legal uncertainty as key constraints on tokenisation uptake, and points to a strong economic and regulatory case for primary legislation reform to establish a purpose built and enduring legal framework for virtual assets. The FMA received 22 submissions from market participants and other stakeholders, with respondents highlighting a fragmented domestic regime spanning financial markets, payments, property and contract law, tax, and anti money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT), and a lack of a coherent licensing pathway for virtual asset service providers. Submissions also flagged that technology neutral financial markets legislation was designed around traditional off chain models and does not always fit tokenised or natively on chain products and services, including for trading, clearing, settlement and custody, alongside gaps where tokenised products fall outside existing financial product definitions. Key areas raised included overseas momentum on stablecoins and integration into payments, uncertainty over the legal and prudential status of tokenised deposits, constraints from New Zealand’s market size and infrastructure, and risks around custody and private keys, cybersecurity, disclosure for complex token features, fraud and scams, governance and accountability in decentralised structures, price volatility and token run dynamics, and smart contract vulnerabilities. Next steps focus inter alia on advising Government on how existing legislation affects tokenised products and services and where change could improve certainty or address gaps, as well as collaboratively developing guidance to reduce regulatory ambiguity.

The Australian Government has released the full package of exposure draft Tranche 1 legislation for its payments licensing reforms and is seeking feedback on a new regulatory framework for payment service providers. The package covers definitions of regulated payment functions, licensing obligations (including safeguarding of payment-related money), exemptions and exclusions, unclaimed monies rules, a new prudential framework, a rule-making power for a mandatory and revised ePayments Code, and transitional arrangements, alongside an early partial draft of exemption and exclusion regulations. The draft updates the earlier Tranche 1a package and adjusts definitions for stored value facilities (SVFs), payment initiation services, and payment technology and enablement services (PTES), with “pure back-end” PTES excluded from regulation. Tokenised SVFs are treated as financial products, while stablecoin tokens attached to rights under tokenised SVFs are not separately treated as financial products, and new disclosure requirements apply to tokenised SVFs; SVFs would also be prohibited from paying interest benefits and users would have a right to redeem money held in an SVF. Safeguarding would apply to providers that hold payment money, with the default approach for providers solely regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission requiring segregation and holding funds in a trust account with an authorised deposit-taking institution, and an approval pathway for alternative methods such as insurance or a guarantee. The proposed prudential regime would replace the existing Purchased Payment Facilities framework and apply to major SVF providers holding at least AUD 200 million in stored value (group aggregate) that allow redemption in Australian currency, as well as Minister-designated providers, with an opt-in pathway for other SVF providers; unclaimed monies held by major SVF providers could be transferred to ASIC with procedures for return to customers.

New Zealand's Council of Financial Regulators has published the findings from its consultation on access to basic transaction accounts and set out a joint response centred on a hybrid approach to expand availability. The preferred model will be implemented through a Memorandum of Understanding on Access to Basic Transaction Services, supported by a regulatory Practice Note intended to clarify inclusive onboarding practices. Consultation responses pointed to broad agreement that access problems exist under the status quo, with 98% of submitters supporting action by deposit takers and regulators. Support was strongest for a hybrid approach (46% of submitters), compared with a regulatory approach (36%) and an industry-led approach (4%), alongside widespread support for New Zealanders having a right to access a basic transaction account while recognising limited refusal grounds including violent or aggressive behaviour, reputational risk, and financial crime risk. Feedback also emphasised core account features such as simplified onboarding, no cost to open and use, multiple access channels, ability to conduct daily transactions, and exclusion of overdraft or debt functionality, while raising concerns about the suitability of balance caps and the feasibility of transaction limits for some providers. During Q1 and Q2 2026, CoFR will continue targeted engagement on the Practice Note and work with financial entities to confirm participants, with the aim of operationalising the Memorandum of Understanding by Q3 2026. Monitoring is expected to be supported by data published by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand and by annual reviews using Financial Inclusion Indicators, with the Reserve Bank of New Zealand also taking a leading role in implementing and overseeing the memorandum

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has published Consultation Paper 387 setting out proposals to strengthen transparency over who ultimately owns or controls entities listed on Australian financial markets, including exposures built through equity derivatives. The package is intended to implement Schedule 1 reforms under the Treasury Laws Amendment (Strengthening Financial Systems and Other Measures) Act 2025 and includes a draft legislative instrument, a proposed new “Substantial Holding Notice” form and amendments to Regulatory Guides 5, 9 and 222. Key proposals cover how equity-derivative exposures would be captured in substantial holding and tracing notice regimes, including calculation methods for “deemed economic interests” and “offsetting short positions” (including full notional treatment for linear derivatives and delta-based approaches for non-linear derivatives), daily calculation expectations and specific rules for basket and index references, including thresholds that can reduce reported interests to zero in defined cases. ASIC also proposes exemptions for certain market makers, client-facing service providers and clearing and settlement facility licensees where derivative dealing is undertaken in specified ordinary-course activities and does not confer capacity to influence the listed entity, alongside a potential requirement to make a market statement when relevant exposure rises above 20% or falls to 20% or below. Finally, ASIC is also considering alternative disclosure triggers based on net economic exposure thresholds.

The Securities Commission Malaysia has unveiled the Capital Market Masterplan 2026–2030, setting a five-year roadmap within a 20-year vision to grow and reposition Malaysia’s capital market as a driver of economic transformation. The blueprint projects the capital market expanding faster than GDP to reach MYR 5.8–6.3 trillion by 2030 from MYR 4.3 trillion in 2025, implying a compound annual growth rate of 6–8%. The roadmap is framed around four themes of vibrancy, inclusivity, sustainability and regional opportunities, with delivery levers including new listings, mobilisation of institutional capital, value-creation programmes, and stronger corporate bond and sukuk financing. Planned focus areas include lifting equity valuations and trading activity, increasing the visibility of high-quality public listed companies through innovation and improved capital efficiency, widening retail access to capital market products and services alongside financial literacy and digital enablement, and mobilising financing for climate mitigation, transition, adaptation and resilience. Regional measures include supporting the overseas expansion of Malaysian firms, facilitating issuance of niche products with foreign underlying, and attracting more foreign listings and bond or sukuk issuance, alongside efforts to embed Maqasid al-Shariah principles in Islamic capital market offerings and strengthen regulatory and governance excellence. Prime Minister Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim launched the masterplan at the Securities Commission Malaysia, and the blueprint is positioned as a whole-of-nation effort aligned with national strategies including the MADANI Economy framework. A Capital Masterplan Steering Committee comprising government officials and private sector representatives will be established to oversee implementation.

South Korea’s Financial Services Commission announced that the National Assembly has passed amendments to the Special Act on the Prevention of Loss Caused by Telecommunications-based Financial Fraud and Refund for Loss, creating a legal basis to address vishing scams that steal or launder proceeds through virtual assets. The revisions bring virtual asset exchange service providers into the same prevention and loss-relief framework that applies to financial companies and extend victim remedies to virtual assets. Virtual asset exchange service providers will be required to verify the purpose of virtual asset transactions, monitor suspicious activity linked to vishing, freeze transactions when vishing is suspected, and support loss refunds. They will also join the AI-based Anti-phishing Sharing and Analysis Platform (ASAP), in operation since October 2025, for real-time information sharing with other organizations and authorities. The amended Act adds virtual assets to the types of property eligible for vishing-related loss relief and permits refunds to be paid in cash, after selling virtual assets, where the victim prefers.

The Eurosystem has published a roadmap for Appia, a strategic initiative to work with public and private stakeholders on the design of a European tokenised wholesale financial ecosystem in which central bank money remains the core settlement asset. The roadmap positions Appia as the longer-term track of the Eurosystem’s tokenised wholesale strategy, alongside Pontes, its planned distributed ledger technology settlement offering. Pontes is due for an initial launch in the third quarter of 2026 and is intended to provide central bank money settlement for distributed ledger technology based transactions by linking market distributed ledger technology infrastructures with the Eurosystem’s TARGET Services, with further functionalities to be added over time. Appia will assess alternative distributed ledger technology network configurations, including a single shared network versus multiple interconnected networks, and will focus on common standards and European governance to reduce fragmentation and avoid critical dependencies on foreign infrastructures or laws. The work is structured around six building blocks covering interoperability and standards, monetary policy operations and collateral management on distributed ledger technology, the design and governance of tokenised central bank money infrastructures for TARGET currencies including the euro, cross-border links, legal and supervisory resilience considerations, and implementation impacts on existing infrastructures. The roadmap also references the Eurosystem’s plan to accept marketable assets issued in central securities depositories using distributed ledger technology as eligible collateral for Eurosystem credit operations as of 30 March 2026, and its exploration of accepting distributed ledger technology issued assets that are not represented in central securities depositories. The Eurosystem plans to publish a blueprint in 2028 and expects Appia findings to inform incremental enhancements to Pontes in the coming years. Stakeholders are invited to submit feedback and expressions of interest via a questionnaire, with responses due by 22 April 2026.

The Council of the European Union agreed its position on the EU’s Digital Omnibus on Artificial Intelligence, a proposal under the EU simplification agenda to streamline parts of the digital legislative framework and the implementation of harmonised rules on artificial intelligence. The Council’s mandate broadly maintains the European Commission’s approach, while setting a revised timetable for applying the Artificial Intelligence Act’s high-risk system requirements and adding targeted governance and compliance adjustments. The Commission proposal would delay the application of high-risk AI rules by up to 16 months so they apply once the Commission confirms that needed standards and tools are available, extend certain exemptions from small and medium-sized enterprises to small mid-caps, allow processing of sensitive personal data for bias detection and mitigation, reinforce the AI Office’s powers and reduce governance fragmentation. The Council text adds a prohibition on AI practices involving the generation of non-consensual sexual and intimate content or child sexual abuse material, and introduces fixed application dates of 2 December 2027 for stand-alone high-risk AI systems and 2 August 2028 for high-risk AI systems embedded in products. It also reinstates the requirement for providers to register AI systems in the EU database for high-risk systems when they conclude that a system should be exempt from high-risk classification. In parallel, it tightens the conditions for using special categories of personal data for bias detection and correction by restoring the “strict necessity” standard. On implementation infrastructure, the text pushes back the deadline for national competent authorities to establish AI regulatory sandboxes to 2 December 2027. It further clarifies how supervision is split between the AI Office and national authorities for AI systems based on general-purpose AI models when the model and the system are developed by the same provider, with national authorities remaining competent in specified areas including law enforcement, border management, judicial authorities and financial institutions.

The European Securities and Markets Authority published its first risk monitoring report of 2026, concluding that risks of market and systemic stress in EU financial markets remain high despite resilient market performance in the second half of 2025. The assessment was completed before the war in the Middle East began in late February 2026, with the report pointing to initial market reactions as illustrating the transmission channels and sensitivities it highlights. The report keeps market, contagion and operational risk categories at the highest level, with credit risk assessed as high and environmental risk as medium. Key vulnerabilities cited include the likelihood of sudden and significant price swings amid stretched equity valuations and an uncertain EU economic outlook, rising correlations across asset classes that increase contagion risk, and escalating cyber and hybrid threats that raise the risk of operational disruption. ESMA also flags private credit as a systemic vulnerability given opacity and interlinkages, and points to structural weaknesses in crypto markets exposed by the 10 October flash crash, alongside growing interconnections between crypto and traditional markets through stablecoins. For the forthcoming quarter, ESMA describes persistent uncertainty, with tariff-driven inflation potentially complicating central bank policy decisions and adding volatility in bond and currency markets, while rapid private credit expansion and crypto-traditional market linkages could amplify spillovers. It states that retail and institutional investors should remain vigilant and maintain robust liquidity buffers to withstand sharp market corrections.

The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority has published a discussion paper and opened a consultation seeking stakeholder feedback on inefficiencies, overlaps and inconsistencies across regulatory reporting and disclosure requirements for insurers and institutions for occupational retirement provision. The input will feed into EIOPA’s final report to the European Commission on potential measures for an integrated data collection system, as mandated under the amended Solvency II Directive. The discussion paper frames integrated data collection as a means to reduce duplicative and inconsistent reporting, improve data standardisation and data sharing, and lower compliance costs, while maintaining supervisory needs. It highlights particular priorities on derivatives and collective investment undertakings reporting, including potential to draw more on existing sources such as European Market Infrastructure Regulation data and more harmonised European funds reporting under the revised Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities Directive and Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive, alongside relevant workstreams led by the European Securities and Markets Authority. The paper also discusses practical levers such as aligning concepts and definitions, expanding reuse of data already collected, modernising reporting IT and automation, and potential alternative collection architectures ranging from a single submission interface to more centralised hub models, with governance, confidentiality and legal constraints treated as key considerations.

The Bank of France, the French Financial Markets Authority and the Directorate General of the Treasury have launched a strategic market-wide group to identify concrete projects and accelerate adoption of distributed ledger technology (DLT) in financial markets, with the stated aim of improving financing for the French and European economy. Led by Denis Beau (First Deputy Governor of the Bank of France and designated chair of the Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority), Christophe Bories (Directorate General of the Treasury) and Sébastien Raspiller (French Financial Markets Authority), the group brings together issuers, investors, financial intermediaries and infrastructure providers. Its work will cover private tokenised settlement assets (tokenised deposits and stablecoins) and their interaction with an interbank wholesale central bank digital currency, tokenisation of financial instruments starting with the NEU-CP short-term negotiable debt market, industrial models for DLT-based market infrastructures, and the development of tokenised funds. It will also examine competitiveness and EU financial sovereignty risks from slow adoption, and may feed into the Franco-German workstream on tokenised finance. A report with technical analysis and recommendations is due in summer 2026.

De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) has published its Payment Strategy 2026–2028, setting out how it plans to widen payment options while strengthening the resilience and autonomy of the payments sector, alongside maintaining access to payment services for vulnerable groups. The strategy prioritises reducing operational vulnerabilities in the payment chain and limiting dependence on non-European players, including by exploring offline or deferred card payments, promoting dual-provider approaches, and reinforcing cash as a fall-back option, with the National Forum on the Payment System advising households to keep sufficient cash for a 72-hour disruption and an infrastructure target of at least 22.3 ATMs per 100,000 residents. It also backs European payment instruments, including the European Payments Initiative’s Wero, expected to roll out in the Netherlands in 2026 following the 2024 acquisition of iDEAL, and the digital euro as a public retail payment option designed for online and offline use. On innovation, DNB points to developments in wallets, fraud prevention and artificial intelligence, and welcomes the opening of smartphone Near Field Communication access to third parties following European Commission requirements. The strategy calls for payment service providers to be transparent about AI use and manage related risks in line with the European AI Act, and notes that the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets will supervise Buy Now Pay Later providers from November 2026 at the latest. For wholesale payments, DNB highlights further evolution of TARGET services and cross-border linkages, including expectations for major TARGET participants to use two different data networks from March 2026, work to link TARGET Instant Payment Settlement to foreign instant payment systems, and joint Eurosystem work on wholesale central bank digital currency and the Pontes bridging service to settle Distributed Ledger Technology transactions in central bank money.

The United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority has published a findings report on how regulated firms are delivering the Consumer Duty’s consumer understanding outcome, setting out expectations and examples of good and poor practice across customer communications, journeys and governance. The publication is intended to help firms strengthen how they design, test, monitor and oversee communications so retail customers receive fair, clear and not misleading information at the right time and in a form they can understand. The review draws on supervisory work, behavioural research and industry engagement, alongside a September 2025 survey of 38 firms spanning insurance, retail banking, payments, consumer finance and Contract for Difference providers. It highlights good practice such as using multiple insight sources including call listening, complaints, chat transcripts, website analytics and drop-off data, testing communications before and after changes using proportionate methods such as surveys, comprehension checks and A/B testing, and applying plain language, visual hierarchy and layered content that surfaces key risks, exclusions and eligibility early. The FCA also points to the use of supportive tools such as calculators, videos, walkthroughs and prompts, “tell us once” accessibility systems and testing with vulnerable cohorts, and expects financial promotions to give risks equal prominence to benefits with ongoing monitoring of customer outcomes. Common weaknesses included superficial or poorly evidenced testing, reliance on sales data or lack of complaints as assurance, limited adaptation for accessibility needs or lower financial capability, unbalanced promotions that overemphasise benefits, and governance arrangements with unclear accountability, weak feedback loops and limited use of management information to drive improvements.

The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Mastercard to deepen cooperation on cybersecurity, with the stated aim of strengthening the cyber resilience of Ukraine’s financial sector. The cooperation is intended to develop joint initiatives to promote cybersecurity best practices across the Ukrainian financial sector, exchange data and analytical insights on current cyber threats to improve risk assessment and inform cybersecurity projects, and build cybersecurity competencies including threat prevention, cyber incident response, and safe digital practices. The NBU and Mastercard framed the arrangement as supporting the implementation of international cyber protection standards, innovation, and further digitalization of financial services, and linked it to Mastercard’s broader Digital Country Partnership program in Ukraine referenced in a November 2025 memorandum with the Ukrainian government.

The Securities and Exchange Commission, Ghana has issued Securities Industry (Regulatory Sandbox Licensing) Guidelines 2026, replacing its 2020 sandbox framework and setting out how firms can obtain a Regulatory Sandbox Licence to test innovative capital market activities in a controlled, time-bound live environment, including virtual or digital asset solutions under a designated Virtual Asset Sandbox Track. The Commission has also announced the first cohort of Virtual Asset Service Providers admitted to the sandbox to pilot products and services under its regulatory oversight. The Guidelines establish eligibility, application and approval processes, selection criteria, safeguards and reporting requirements, and give the Commission discretion to set testing parameters and impose additional conditions on a risk-based, proportionate and technology-neutral basis. Applicants must meet fit and proper requirements, submit a detailed testing plan (including user limits, transaction caps and geographic scope) and provide winding-up and failure management arrangements; virtual or digital asset proposals must additionally set out custody and asset control models, private key management governance, transaction monitoring and sanctions screening controls, and material third-party dependencies. Foreign Virtual Asset Service Providers must also evidence home-jurisdiction authorisation and oversight. The virtual asset supplement further sets a minimum local participation threshold of 30% alongside requirements for a physical operational presence and Ghana-resident senior or compliance officer. The virtual asset sandbox period is set at 12 months, with a transition pathway after the first six months for products and services deemed market ready and compliant to move to activity-based licence or registration, while non-ready solutions may continue testing for the remaining six months. As part of the inauguration of the sandbox, 11 participants were admitted.

The Central Bank of Kenya and the National Bank of Rwanda have signed a Memorandum of Understanding setting out a commitment and steps to develop a licence passporting framework for payment service providers across the two jurisdictions. The framework is intended to enable mutual recognition of licensing regimes so licensed PSPs can expand operations between Kenya and Rwanda with continued regulatory oversight and supervisory cooperation. The initiative is positioned as a response to duplicative regulatory processes where licensing requirements are substantially similar, and as a mechanism to reduce regulatory fragmentation that has constrained cross-border payment service expansion. The cooperation is further anchored on the East Africa Community Cross-Border Payment System Masterplan, which includes development of a mutual recognition framework for PSP licensing in partner states as a stated priority.

The Central Bank of Bahrain released a statement affirming that Bahrain’s banking and financial sector continues to operate normally and provide services efficiently amid current regional developments and what it described as Iranian aggression in the region. The Central Bank noted that it has maintained heightened oversight and coordinated closely with banks, insurance companies and other financial institutions to support business continuity and uninterrupted delivery of financial services, underpinned by advanced regulatory frameworks and strengthened digital infrastructure. It further reported that capital adequacy and liquidity ratios remain above regulatory requirements, payment systems continue to operate efficiently and securely, and physical and cybersecurity measures across financial institutions are at high readiness as part of an integrated security framework.

The United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission announced that they have entered into a memorandum of understanding to guide coordination and collaboration between the agencies, with a focus on harmonizing oversight and reducing duplicative regulation while supporting market integrity and investor and customer protection. Alongside the agreement, the agencies established a Joint Harmonization Initiative, co-led by Meghan Tente (CFTC) and Robert Teply (SEC), to coordinate policymaking, examinations and enforcement in shared areas of interest. Priority workstreams include joint interpretations and rulemakings to clarify product definitions, modernization of clearing, margin and collateral frameworks, reduced frictions for dually registered exchanges, trading venues and intermediaries, development of a fit-for-purpose framework for crypto assets and other emerging technologies, streamlined regulatory reporting for trade data, funds and intermediaries, and coordinated cross-market examinations, economic analyses, risk monitoring, surveillance and enforcement. The memorandum also sets procedures for regular interagency meetings, data sharing upon request, advance notifications on matters affecting common jurisdictions, cross training of staff, coordinated exam planning and aligned examinations, consultation on enforcement investigations to avoid duplicative relief and conflicting obligations, and work toward interoperable data standards and analytical tools.

Department of Finance Canada announced new rules capping non-sufficient funds (NSF) fees at CAD 10, down from as high as CAD 50, effective March 12, 2026. The package also introduces limits intended to reduce repeat and low-value NSF charges, with the cap expected to save Canadians more than CAD 600 million annually. Under the new protections, consumers cannot be charged an NSF fee more than once within two business days for the same deposit account, and no NSF fee may be charged when the overdraft amount on that account is less than CAD 10. The release also highlighted other affordability measures already underway, including enhanced low-cost and no-cost bank accounts in place since December 1, 2025 under a modernized Commitment agreed to by 14 federally regulated financial institutions, and modernized cheque hold rules in Bill C-15 that aim to increase immediately available deposited funds from CAD 100 to CAD 250 and remove timing distinctions between deposit methods.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Division of Market Oversight issued a staff advisory on prediction markets setting out its current views on how designated contract markets should list and oversee event contract derivatives as these products grow in popularity. The advisory is intended to reinforce existing compliance expectations around contract design, market integrity, and ongoing supervision. The guidance stresses that designated contract markets should only list event contracts that are not readily susceptible to manipulation and should maintain robust real-time surveillance, investigation processes, and enforcement practices to detect and address disorderly trading and abusive conduct, including risks linked to misuse of confidential information. It highlights manipulation and price distortion risks in cash-settled event contracts, with particular focus on sports-related contracts where settlement outcomes may be influenced by a single individual or a small group, such as officiating decisions, injuries, or unsportsmanlike conduct, and calls for clear settlement methodologies supported by reliable, objective data sources. On product listings, the advisory reiterates that new event contracts can be introduced through self-certification or voluntary prior Commission approval, but in each case submissions should include a complete compliance analysis supported by documentation and data. It cautions that overly broad contract specifications and multiple permutations can weaken the susceptibility-to-manipulation assessment, encourages early engagement with staff during contract development, and points to potential coordination with sports leagues and governing bodies on settlement integrity and information-sharing arrangements.

The Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization has published updated guidance for Order Execution Only dealers, replacing its 2021 guidance note and clarifying how dealers can provide more client-facing supports without making recommendations. The guidance is effective immediately and is intended to help do-it-yourself investors access regulated tools and information while maintaining investor protection safeguards. The updated approach allows informative resources and decision-making supports so long as the dealer does not endorse a specific investment decision. CIRO lists examples such as alerts and notifications, self-help tools and educational information, and expects corresponding safeguards including clear disclosures and disclaimers, transparent and objective criteria, management or avoidance of material conflicts of interest, and regular monitoring and updates. The guidance also clarifies that how content is delivered is not determinative, but proactively sending unsolicited communications may imply endorsement, and dealers providing third-party materials with recommendation language should clearly state that the dealer does not endorse those recommendations. CIRO developed the update following consultations launched on December 13, 2024 and August 12, 2025. It intends to publish behavioural research findings by the summer of 2026 on the impact of decision-making supports on high-risk investment strategies.