SECP Chairman Aamir Khan stated that the Commission has implemented numerous reforms to establish a comprehensive and coherent industry policy aimed at fostering regulatory thinking and fostering a conducive FinTech climate in Pakistan, including the regulatory sandbox initiative.
Khan was speaking at a webinar titled “Second Cohort of SECP’s Regulatory Sandbox,” which was organised by SECP to raise awareness about the Regulatory Sandbox definition and to explain its benefits to industry and working methods.
Baqar Jafri, CEO, Finox Pvt. Limited, addressed the webinar participants and emphasised the importance of promoting business models that facilitate investor education and improve consumer acquisition funnels for financial institutions. Without trained and educated investors, financial technology can accelerate the use of technology to facilitate mis-selling and customer churning.
Aamir Khan said that Pakistan’s FinTech industry is thriving and can play a critical role in expanding financial inclusion. However, he said, the developments resulting from this development present difficulties for regulators and financial supervisors charged with minimising uncertainty. To resolve this challenge, Khan explained, SECP introduced the concept of Regulatory Sandbox, which offers a customised regulatory environment in which creative goods, services, and business models can be tested live on a limited scale under the regulator’s supervision.
The SECP Chairman informed participants that the second cohort of the Regulatory Sandbox will prioritise innovation in the areas of digital assets / security token offerings (STOs), non-bank financial firms, blockchain / distributed ledger technologies for capital markets, digital identity / anti-money laundering / anti-terrorism financing, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and robotic process automation.