IFSCA becomes member of IOSCO

The International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) has become an Associate Member of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO).

The IOSCO is the international organization that brings together the world’s securities regulators, covering more than 95% of the world’s securities markets, and is the global standard setter for the securities sector.

Establishment of IFSCA

The International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) has been established on April 27, 2020 under the International Financial Services Centres Authority Act, 2019. It is headquartered at GIFT City, Gandhinagar in Gujarat.

What is an IFSC?

An IFSC enables bringing back the financial services and transactions that are currently carried out in offshore financial centers by Indian corporate entities and overseas branches / subsidiaries of financial institutions (FIs) to India by offering business and regulatory environment that is comparable to other leading international financial centers in the world like London and Singapore.

It would provide Indian corporates easier access to global financial markets.

What are the services an IFSC can provide?

• Fund-raising services for individuals, corporations and governments.
• Asset management and global portfolio diversification undertaken by pension funds, insurance companies and mutual funds.
• Wealth management.
• Global tax management and cross-border tax liability optimization, which provides a business opportunity for financial intermediaries, accountants and law firms.
• Global and regional corporate treasury management operations that involve fund-raising, liquidity investment and management and asset-liability matching.
• Risk management operations such as insurance and reinsurance.
• Merger and acquisition activities among trans-national corporations.

About IOSCO

International Organization of Securities Commissions

The International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) is the international body that brings together the world’s securities regulators and is recognized as the global standard setter for the securities sector. IOSCO develops, implements and promotes adherence to internationally recognized standards for securities regulation. It works intensively with the G20 and the Financial Stability Board (FSB) on the global regulatory reform agenda.

IOSCO works closely with the G20 and the Financial Stability Board (FSB) in setting up the standards for strengthening the securities markets. The IOSCO Objectives and Principles of Securities Regulation have been endorsed by FSB as one of the key standards for sound financial systems.

The membership of IOSCO would provide IFSCA the platform to exchange information at the global level and regional level on areas of common interests. Further, the IOSCO platform would enable IFSCA to learn from the experiences and best practices of the regulators of other well established financial centres.

The IOSCO’s membership is a significant milestone in connecting IFSCA with the regulators of securities markets globally and would contribute immensely towards the development and regulation of the financial products, financial services and financial institutions at the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City International Financial Services Centre.