CAPE TOWN, South Africa—South Africa’s financial regulator has declared digital assets financial products, while Dubai has announced plans for a Fintech Summit.
In South Africa, the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) published a notice confirming that it had updated the country’s Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act to include digital assets, according to CoinGeek.
The FSCA defines a “crypto asset” as a “digital representation of value” that applies cryptographic techniques and uses distributed ledger technology (DLT).
“The declaration is the first crucial step in digital asset regulation in the country. Regulators will now be able to formulate and implement laws to govern the sector, including enforcing anti-money laundering programs and issuing licenses to virtual asset service providers,” CoinGeek reported.
“This was the first legal step that was required to bring the crypto asset industry within the South African legal framework,” Brent Petersen, from the digital asset trading platform Easy Crypto, told CoinGeek.
Fintech Summit in Dubai
Separately, Dubai will host The Dubai FinTech Summit in 2023 as the emirate seeks to continue its efforts to consolidate its position as a global hub for financial technology, The National reported.
The summit, organized by the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), is scheduled to take place on May 8-9, 2023.
The forum will bring together over 5,000 global experts, thought leaders, policymakers, and decision-makers “to discuss the future of the fintech sector,” Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed, deputy prime minister, minister of finance, and president of DIFC, according to the report. The summit is expected to generate reports, strategies, and action plans to promote the growth of the financial services industry. The agenda will feature in-depth discussions across key tracks, including the future of fintech, embedded and open finance, sustainability, Web3, and digital assets, YourStory.com said.