Citation[]
Financial Stability Board, Regulation, Supervision and Oversight of "Global Stablecoin" Arrangements: Final Report and High-Level Recommendations (Oct. 13, 2020) (full-text).
Overview[]
So-called "stablecoins" are a specific category of crypto-assets which have the potential to enhance the efficiency of the provision of financial services, but may also generate risks to financial stability, particularly if they are adopted at a significant scale. While such financial stability risks are currently limited by the relatively small scale of these arrangements, this could change in the future. Stablecoins are an attempt to address the high volatility of "traditional" crypto-assets by tying the stablecoin's value to one or more other assets, such as sovereign currencies. They have the potential to bring efficiencies to payments (including cross-border payments), and to promote financial inclusion. However, a widely adopted stablecoin with a potential reach and use across multiple jurisdictions (so-called "global stablecoins" or GSCs) could become systemically important in and across one or many jurisdictions, including as a means of making payments.
The emergence of GSCs may challenge the comprehensiveness and effectiveness of existing regulatory, supervisory and oversight approaches. The activities associated with GSCs and the risks they may pose can span across banking, payments, and securities/investment regulatory regimes both within jurisdictions and across borders. GSCs also can give rise to specific vulnerabilities. For example, depending on the facts and circumstances, specific money-laundering/terrorist financing risks may emerge; the decentralised nature of GSC arrangements could pose governance challenges; stabilisation mechanisms and redemption arrangements could pose market, liquidity, and credit risks; and, the infrastructure and technology used for recording transactions, and accessing, transferring and exchanging coins could pose operational and cyber-security risks. Ensuring appropriate regulation, supervision and oversight within jurisdictions and internationally will therefore be important to prevent any potential gaps and avoid regulatory arbitrage.
The G20 mandated the FSB in June 2019 to examine regulatory issues raised by GSCs and to advise on multilateral responses as appropriate, taking into account the perspective of emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs). In February 2020, the G20 reiterated the importance of evaluating and appropriately addressing the risks of GSCs before they commence operation and supported the FSB's efforts to develop regulatory recommendations with respect to GSCs. The FSB carried out an analysis of financial stability risks raised by GSCs and conducted a comprehensive survey of regulatory, supervisory and oversight approaches to stablecoins amongst FSB members and non-FSB members represented on FSB Regional Consultative Groups (RCGs). A report with proposed recommendations to address the regulatory, supervisory and oversight challenges raised by GSCs arrangements was issued for public consultation in April 2020.1 The FSB also carried out a series of virtual outreach meetings with representatives from regulated financial institutions, financial technology firms, academia and the legal field.
This final report takes account of the feedback from the public consultation and the outreach. It sets out ten high-level recommendations that seek to promote coordinated and effective regulation, supervision and oversight of GSC arrangements to address the financial stability risks posed by GSCs, both at the domestic and international level, while supporting responsible innovation and providing sufficient flexibility for jurisdictions to implement domestic approaches. The recommendations call for regulation, supervision and oversight that is proportionate to the risks, and stress the value of flexible, efficient, inclusive, and multi-sectoral cross-border cooperation, coordination, and information sharing arrangements among authorities that take into account the evolving nature of GSC arrangements and the risks they may pose over time.
The recommendations are addressed to authorities at jurisdictional level and focus on privately-issued GSCs predominately intended for retail use. Although the recommendations are aimed at global stablecoins, they could be used for other stablecoins, including those that may pose risks to financial stability only in some countries or regions, and, potentially, other crypto-assets that could pose risks similar to some of those posed by GSCs because of comparable international reach, scale and use.
The report is intended to primarily address risks to financial stability and therefore does not cover important issues such as AML/CFT, data privacy, cyber security consumer and investor protection and competition, which however could have consequences for financial stability if they are not properly addressed. It therefore stresses the importance of addressing these issues as part of a comprehensive effective supervisory, regulatory and oversight framework.