2020年给世界带来了许多变化, including an acceleration in the pace of asset digitization—a space that is bringing about many exciting yet unexplored issues.
我和Valerie Szczepanik谈过了, 导演, Strategic Hub for Innovation and Financial Technology (FinHub), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to discuss how the agency is engaging with market participants, 以及该机构今年提供的发展, 特别是在代币化证券方面.
作为FinHub的负责人, Szczepanik leads the office that coordinates and consolidates the fintech-related work across the SEC. FinHub helps the agency work with market participants and regulators worldwide while encouraging leading-edge innovation. The office brings the expertise within the commission back into FinHub, creating an exciting cross-pollination of new and existing knowledge.
她说:“我们向整个委员会提供专业知识. Internally that includes rulemaking, policy work and enforcement work. 同时, [FinHub] serves as a platform for public engagement with developers, 企业家, 律师和学术界, all in an attempt to foster responsible opportunities for innovation.”
FinHub was created in 2018, and in December, was elevated to a stand-alone office at the SEC. “This reorganization is a commitment to foster responsible innovation, provides more dedicated resources and gives FinHub a more prominent, permanent stature as we explore new and evolving technologies,什切帕尼克说.
着眼于发展技术, FinHub目前专注于分布式账本技术, 区块链, 数字资产, 人工智能, 机器学习, robo-advising (automated investment advice) and online marketplace lending.
Despite a challenging year, the SEC made significant developments in 2020. Szczepanik spoke about new offerings in the digital asset space and how the agency takes a technology-neutral approach. “不管安全是传统的还是数字的, 或者在发行或交易中使用了什么技术, 我们仍然采用同样的规章制度.”
无论安全是传统的还是数字的, 或者在发行或交易中使用了什么技术, 我们仍然采用同样的规章制度.
The Commission has been evaluating custody of the digital asset space and engaging with the industry on the various concerns. These conversations led to the groundwork for the digital asset custody statement, whereby the agency is looking to encourage innovation and feedback by taking a unique no-action position for five years. 因为行政部门的变动, the statement has not yet been published in the federal register.
Special purpose broker/dealers will be allowed to custody digital asset securities, 根据客户保护规则15(c)(3) [17 CFR 240].15c3-3]. “We’re looking for engagement with market participants as they innovate in this area. We encourage input so we can evaluate and see if our approach needs to be modified.” Szczepanik is hopeful that the five-year period will encourage participants to innovate and enhance their ability to afford customer protections around the possession and control of 数字资产.
Looking ahead to 2021, I asked Szczepanik about some of FinHub's priorities. 考虑到强制过渡到远程工作环境, Szczepanik remarked how the agency is looking at how regulators can continue to perform supervisory roles in the changing environment. This includes the use of innovative technology for regulators and supervisors to implement and enforce regulations and aims to assist in digital communication between market participants and regulatory organizations, 或监管技术或“SupTech”.”
FinHub一直在研究全球稳定币的影响, following the recommendations made by the Financial Stability Board (FSB) in October. The agency is also working to understand the various structures of decentralized finance (“DeFi”) and figuring out what risks they bring to the financial markets. These applications and structures built on top of 区块链 are designed to provide the same services and functionalities as traditional financial services products and systems.
Szczepanik also touched on how coordination between other government regulatory agencies and FinHub is crucial. The sibling agencies—the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN)—are all facing similar challenges working with emerging technologies. 有时司法管辖区重叠, 斯切帕尼克说, “communication is key as we have different jurisdictions and mandates. It is important that we take a coordinated approach as each agency applies their own rules and regulations.”
Issues such as anti-money laundering and countering the finance of terrorism apply internationally to digital as well as traditional assets. As broker/ dealers begin to get involved in the developing digital asset markets, Szczepanik noted that it is important to recognize that obligations under the Bank Secrecy Act apply.
The financial industry and regulators are continuing to engage on the topic of tokenized securities, 以负责任的方式推动创新.