A Task Force of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) is meeting this week in Brussels at the invitation of the Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA), to discuss structured products and securitization-related issues.
In the face of the growing complexity of certain financial products, IOSCO’s Task Force on Unregulated Markets and Products is preparing a report on structured products. The meeting in Brussels serves as an opportunity for the different regulators to share their experiences with regard to this subject. In 2011, the FSMA developed a moratorium on the distribution to retail investors of particularly complex structured products. The moratorium is intended to lead to a simplification of these products in an effort to ensure that they are transparent and sufficiently comprehensible to financial consumers. All major distributors of structured products have voluntarily signed on to the moratorium.
The meeting also focuses on securitization-related issues. The IOSCO Task Force recently published a consultation report on Global Developments in Securitization Regulation, which outlines policy issues arising from its work on securitization. This consultation is in response to a request from the Financial Stability Board as part of its work to strengthen oversight of the shadow banking system.
"Regulators ought to draw lessons from the financial crisis and adopt an evolving and preventive approach. We are meeting here in Brussels to share our experience of the moratorium and to discuss developments in the structured products market in order to seek, together, the appropriate responses. We are pleased to host this meeting as part of our commitment to IOSCO, further to the election of the FSMA as member of the IOSCO Board " said Jean-Paul Servais, Chairman of the FSMA.
The IOSCO Task Force is co-chaired by Mr Greg Medcraft and Mr Edouard Vieillefond. Mr Medcraft has been the Chairman of the Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) since 2011, following two years as a Commissioner. He will take office as Chair of the IOSCO Board from March 2013 onwards. Mr Vieillefond has been Managing Director of the French financial market regulator (Autorité des Marchés Financiers) since 2009.
The co-chairs stated: "IOSCO continues its efforts to shape the global framework for securities market regulation for the sake of investor protection in a robust and transparent market environment. Our meeting in Brussels of experts from national securities regulators allows us to make further progress as regards our workstreams on securitization and on retail structured products."
About IOSCO: IOSCO was founded in 1983 and comprises 115 national supervisors (website: www.iosco.org). The objective of the organization is to promote cooperation among financial market supervisors and to develop international standards and best practice. The FSMA was elected member of the IOSCO Board in 2012. The Board is the governing body of IOSCO and has 32 members.