UAE’s SCA Signs MoU With ICFR

The Emirates Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the International Centre for Financial Regulation (ICFR) of the United Kingdom. The agreement aims at laying a solid foundation and a framework for joint cooperation between the two sides.

H.E. Abdullah Al-Turifi, SCA Chief Executive Officer, signed the MoU for his side, while H.E. Barbara Ridpath, ICFR Chief Executive Officer, also signed for her outfit, in a ceremony which was attended by officials from both sides.

The MoU seeks to boost joint coordination between the two sides and to make use of the professional education and research implemented by ICFR with the aim of developing the capital markets and financial services industry, in general and developing the professional career standards of practitioners, in particular.

In a statement after signing the agreement, Al-Turifi said the SCA committed itself to signing the agreement in view of the securities market supervisory and regulatory responsibilities entrusted to it. "By signing this agreement, the SCA seeks to benefit from the services being offered by the ICFR in this regard," he added.

He pointed out that the agreement was the output of the recommendations of the 2nd UAE-UK Joint Committee Meeting held in Abu Dhabi last February, during which representatives of the two countries discussed ways to boost avenues of cooperation in the areas of economy, finance, capacity building, etc. and probed further for other areas of mutual interest and benefit, including tailor-made courses for SCA employees, investor education through investing "tools" for investors and by examining best methods for investor education and training in an efforts to boost protection for investors and assist them in making sound investment decisions.

The agreement, among other things, outlines mechanisms and means of achieving the objectives of the MoU, which include boosting cooperation and mutual understanding of SCA needs and ICFR’s offerings, proposal of a training program for UAE investment professionals in agreement with SCA which would help local professionals improve their understanding of available products and appropriate risk management techniques for those products, developing research proposals on subjects which would help SCA further develop market-appropriate product and market regulation in the UAE and encouraging continuing education and professional development.

Based on the MoU, the SCA and the ICFR will work together to develop mutually-agreed training and research topics to advance the stated objectives. From this topic list, the ICFR would establish a roadmap and project plan to achieve the stated objectives, including professional training of investment managers, training in risk management for portfolio managers, research on market impact of new investment products in other markets with implications for the potential impact of their introduction in the UAE and review of literature on best practice in product regulation and its implications for the UAE.

It’s worth noting here that the SCA has cooperation ties with a number of financial institutions in the UK, including the Financial Services Authority (the securities regulator in Briton), the London Stock Exchange, with whom the SCA has long standing cooperation ties, particularly in the area of strategic planning, assessment and training of SCA trainees. The SCA also has similar agreement with the Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment (CISI) in the area of professional training for brokers operating on the UAE securities market.

On the other hand, the ICFR, which is an international centre for financial regulation, intends to provide a fresh perspective on the challenges of regulating global markets. As a non-partisan organization, with the support of both industry and government, ICFR is able to act as a catalyst for dialogue, thought leadership and scholarship in this critical area. ICFR also supports practical training initiatives to improve understanding among practitioners and regulators.

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