A delegation from the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) participated in the meetings of the 47^th conference of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), which was held in Marrakesh, Kingdom of Morocco. H.E Dr. Maryam Butti Al-Suwaidi, SCA's CEO, headed the delegation. Presidents and officials of the financial markets supervisory authorities that are members of the Organization and a number of senior officials, financial and economic experts in major global economic and financial institutions participated in the conference activities.

The activities of the SCA's delegation included active participation in the general conference of the Organization, the meetings of the Presidential Committee, the Growth and Emerging Markets Committee (GEMC) (the largest committee of the Organization), and Africa and Middle East Regional Committee, in addition to the Monitoring Committee concerned with the IOSCO’s Memorandum of Understanding.

Discussing the updates in the securities industry

H.E Dr. Maryam Al-Suwaidi stated that "The five sessions of the conference discussed several topics, including updates in the securities industry, how the financial markets can better anticipate crises and prepare to face them in the future, how environmental constraints can be transformed into new opportunities for green growth, and how to involve everyone in that as well as the role that financial markets in emerging countries can play in helping to recover after the outbreak of the Covid pandemic. The latest developments in Fintech and the new risks it brings such as money laundering in Cryptocurrencies, decentralized finance, money and cyber security and their effects on financial markets were also reviewed.

Dr. Maryam Al-Suwaidi added that “During the meeting of the Presidential Committee, a number of important issues related to the financial services industry were discussed, most notably financial stability, sustainable financing and encrypted assets. The participation of the SCA's delegation also included attending the signing ceremony of five members of the Organization on the multilateral memorandum of understanding, as well as the signature of ten other members on the enhanced version of the multilateral memorandum of understanding (EMMoU).

It is worth noting that the SCA is at the forefront of the supervisory authorities that signed the EMMoU, which represents international recognition - of great importance - that confirms the strength of the legislative and supervisory frameworks in the financial markets in the State, will- consequently- have a positive impact on the level of confidence of the local and foreign investor and enhances the attractiveness of the country's markets for foreign investments.

It should be noted that Dr. Maryam Al-Suwaidi, SCA’s CEO, participated with a working paper along with the speakers in the first discussion session, and participated in a number of work meetings that she held with a number of heads of the corresponding supervisory authorities. The SCA's delegation also participated in the three panel discussions held on the sidelines of the Organization's annual meeting, which revolved around sustainable finance, virtual assets and financial innovation.

Growth and Emerging Markets Committee (GEMC)

The SCA's delegation participated in the meeting of the Growth and Emerging Markets Committee, where the members were briefed on the efforts of the team concerned with the issue of sustainable finance. The future regulatory roadmap, the challenges that hinder the adoption and implementation of reporting standards on the sustainability of companies in the future and the challenges facing emerging markets in the field of sustainable finance such as the issue of climate change were reviewed. The participants reviewed a presentation that included the main results regarding monitoring the process of implementing IOSCO Standards from 1 to 5 related to supervisory authorities. They also discussed the Organization's report on the enforcement toolkit, and the Organization's efforts in capacity building programs.

Africa and Middle East Regional Committee

The activities of the SCA’s delegation at the conference included participating in the meetings of Africa and Middle East Regional Committee (AMERC), where the topics discussed by the IOSCO Board of Directors at the next meeting were reviewed, especially the risk report of 2023, liquidity risk management, sustainable financing, and crypto assets. The Group concerned with the sustainable finance presented its report on standards of the environmental sustainability (ESG Study). The Committee members presented their experiences in the field of sustainable financing. The topics of risks in the region of Africa and the Middle East were discussed, especially the risks arising in the post-Corona epidemic stage and the risks related to the current international political situation, and how to confront these risks.

It is noteworthy that "IOSCO" - which was established in 1983 - seeks to enhance cooperation between its member supervisory authorities and develop standards for monitoring the securities markets to maintain fair, transparent and highly efficient trading, as well as the exchange of information and experiences between these authorities and work to standardize the supervising standards. IOSCO is the global reference authority for setting international standards in the field of securities markets. The Organization includes in its membership the securities supervisory authorities in addition to the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, several financial markets, and various financial and monetary institutions. The number of its members is more than 200, including 115 securities supervisory bodies and authorities. The supervisory authorities that are members of the Organization regulate and supervise more than 95% of the financial markets around the world.

The Organization seeks to enhance investors’ protection and confidence in the safety of securities markets, by exchanging information and strengthening cooperation in the field of supervision and enforcement against improper practices, as well as in the field of supervision of markets and brokers in the markets.

It also works to enhance cooperation in developing, implementing and promoting adherence to internationally recognized standards in addition to exchanging information and experiences at the global and regional levels in order to assist in the development of financial markets, strengthen the infrastructure of the markets and set appropriate legislations and law.