The European Securities and Markets Authority announced a new Union Strategic Supervisory Priority on digital innovation, starting in 2027, to strengthen oversight of supervised entities’ use of artificial intelligence, tokenisation and other emerging technologies. The initiative will seek to build supervisory expertise and common approaches while addressing governance, data quality, bias, third party dependency and risks to investor understanding and outcomes. In 2027, ESMA and national competent authorities will map the use of AI and tokenisation in client facing processes and products, identify supervisory capacity needs and conduct initial checks on a subset of the firms most affected. They will also examine information provided to investors and identify market practices where innovation has improved investor experiences and outcomes. The priority will run alongside the cyber and operational resilience priority launched in 2025, under which authorities plan to expand supervisory coverage, increase on site inspections and address the effects of advanced AI models. ESMA is closing its ESG disclosures priority in 2026 after reporting stronger supervisory capacity, improved oversight of sustainability information and progress in integrating sustainability considerations into investor advice, although remedial work remains underway.
2026-09-23European Securities and Markets Authority
European Securities and Markets Authority announces 2027 digital innovation supervisory priority focused on AI and tokenisation
The European Securities and Markets Authority will begin a digital innovation supervisory priority in 2027, initially focusing on supervised entities’ use of AI and tokenisation. Authorities will map client facing uses, build common supervisory approaches and conduct initial checks on selected firms. The initiative will operate alongside the continuing cyber and operational resilience priority as the ESG disclosures priority closes.