The Guernsey Financial Service Commission (GFSC), Guernsey's regulator for the financial services sector, has formally become a signatory of the International Organization of Securities Commissions' (IOSCO's) Enhanced Multilateral Memorandum of Understanding (EMMoU). It becomes the sixteenth regulator to be permitted to become a signatory, after a rigorous multi-year evaluation process overseen by the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
IOSCO's membership regulates more than 95% of the world's securities markets in some 130 jurisdictions. The EMMoU was designed by IOSCO to update information exchange between regulators, taking into account the vast advances in information technology since the first IOSCO Multilateral Memorandum of Understanding was created in 2002.
Being permitted to sign this international agreement is a sign that the quality of the Bailiwick's regulation is considered, by Guernsey's peers, to be high.
Commenting on the accession to the EMMoU, Director General William Mason commented: "The Commission believes that its accession to the EMMoU should give comfort to other jurisdictions, thereby helping to enhance Guernsey's position as an optimal jurisdiction from which to gather and onward invest funds.
"I'd particularly like to thank HM Comptroller, Robert Titterington and Director of Enforcement, Simon Gaudion for their tireless work managing the demanding enquiries made by the external evaluation team over an extended period."
Co-Deputy Director General Gillian Browning added: "Our inclusion as a first-class signatory of the EMMoU (one of only 16 Appendix A.1 signatories) should help ensure that our overseas counterparts can have confidence in the Bailiwick's regulatory framework, thereby facilitating free trade."
The GFSC also recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the European Central Bank (ECB), the authority responsible for monetary policy and the supervision of significant banking institutions across the Eurozone.
The MoU provides a framework for cooperation and information sharing between the two authorities, fostering a clear channel of communication with one of Guernsey's largest trading partners' regulators.
For more information about Guernsey's finance industry please visit www.weareguernsey.com.
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