Cayman formally admitted to IOSCO
The Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) has become the 189th member of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO). IOSCO is the global standard setting body for the regulation of securities markets that aims to encompass cooperation and information exchange, standard setting and surveillance, and mutual assistance.
On June 10, 2009, during the meeting of the Presidents’ Committee at IOSCO’s 34th Annual Conference in Tel Aviv, Israel, the Authority was formally admitted as an ordinary member.
Now, CIMA officially becomes a party to the IOSCO Multilateral Memorandum of Understanding Concerning Consultation, Cooperation and the Exchange of Information. The Multilateral Memorandum of Understanding was signed by CIMA on March 24, 2009, and it is the benchmark for international cooperation among securities regulators.
CIMA’s Managing Director, Cindy Scotland, told the IOSCO President’s Committee that the formal admission of CIMA into IOSCO marked the culmination of a period of mutual engagement, dialogue and action by our two bodies. Accoding to her, it is “a testament to the good faith of both sides in seeing the process through, and is an example of what can be accomplished when international standard setters engage jurisdictions as equal partners with a common objective”.
She added that the move “represents a strong validation by IOSCO of our ability and our willingness to engage other regulators to facilitate cross-border information exchange and assistance.”
CIMA’s Deputy Managing Director – General Counsel, Langston Sibblies, explained that IOSCO membership has significant commercial benefits for the jurisdiction. He said, “Some countries either do not allow investment vehicles from non-IOSCO member countries to be sold in their jurisdictions or will require greatly enhanced due diligence which makes it more difficult to do business with those jurisdictions. IOSCO membership will remove these impediments and open up these markets for Cayman-domiciled securities providers. This is a development our private sector has looked forward to for a long time. It will be welcomed by the private sector.”