Guidance, Templates and Policy Statements

The Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE), together with the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA), the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) of the Dubai International Financial Centre and the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of Abu Dhabi Global Market, collectively referred to as “Supervisory Authorities”, have issued the “Guidelines for Financial Institutions adopting Enabling Technologies” (“the Guidelines”).

The Guidance sets out the FSRA’s approach to an application for an FSP to operate under the framework outlined here for VC Managers (the “VC Manager Framework”), in addition to the existing requirements in relation to the Threshold Conditions as set out in the FSMR and GEN Rules.

This Guidance is to provide clarity to Relevant Persons and to assist them in understanding their obligations under the UAE ‘Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism’ (AML/CFT) framework, as well as the requirements contained in the Financial Services Regulatory Authority’s AML and Sanctions Rules and Guidance. These laws and regulations set out the minimum standards that must be adhered by Financial Institutions and Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions in the creation and implementation of their KYC policies, processes and procedures.

This Guidance is an intended to provide Authorised Persons with practical illustrations of how the cyber governance principles should be interpreted to mitigate their cyber risks. It also contributes to supporting a holistic response to illicit activity involving cyber-related criminality recognizing its correlation with fraud, money laundering and terrorist financing; and with the aim of balancing innovation and risk to create a safer and more resilient financial ecosystem.

This Joint Guidance proposes practical solutions to manage the impact of economic uncertainty on Expected Credit Loss, while remaining compliant with globally accepted financial reporting standards, IFRS. It is suggested to employ the flexibility embedded in the IFRS 9 framework to cope with the COVID-19 crisis.

This Guidance is issued under section 15 of the Financial Services and Markets Regulations 2015 (“FSMR”). It should be read in conjunction with FSMR, the relevant Rulebooks of the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (“FSRA”), the Guidance & Policies Manual of FSRA, the ‘Guidance – Regulation of Virtual Asset Activities in ADGM’ and the ‘Guidance – Regulation of Digital Securities Activity in ADGM’ (“Digital Securities Guidance”).

This Guidance sets out the FSRA’s approach to the regulation of Virtual Asset activities in ADGM, including activities conducted by Virtual Asset Exchanges, Virtual Asset Custodians and, as applicable, intermediaries engaged in Virtual Asset Activities.

This Guidance sets out the FSRA’s approach to the regulation of Digital Securities in ADGM for both primary and secondary markets, including in relation to Offers, Listings and Market Infrastructures (Recognised Investment Exchanges (RIEs), Multilateral Trading Facilities (MTFs), Recognised Clearing Houses (RCHs), amongst others).

This Guidance and Policies Manual (“GPM”) contains guidance on how the FSRA regulates and supervises financial services firms and markets that operate in ADGM. The GPM is meant to assist persons operating or intending to operate financial services or a market in the ADGM and should be read in conjunction with the Financial Services and Markets Regulations and the ADGM Rulebooks.

This Guidance sets out the FSRA’s approach to those considering developing or using “Application Programming Interfaces (APIs)”, including applicants for a Financial Services Permission in ADGM, financial services firms located outside ADGM, and participants in FinTech, RegTech, SupTech, amongst others.