Global Trustee and Fiduciary Services Bite-Sized Issue 2 2025

2 QUICK LINKS BENCHMARKS REGULATION CRYPTOASSETS DORA EMIR FSB MIFID II/MIFIR MMF SUSTAINABLE FINANCE/ESG T+1 ASIA EUROPE INTERNATIONAL LUXEMBOURG NETHERLANDS NORTH AMERICA UNITED KINGDOM Global Trustee and Fiduciary Services Bite-Sized | Issue 2 | 2025 CRYPTOASSETS ESMA Provides Guidance on MiCA Best Practices On 31 January 2025, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published a new supervisory briefing aiming to align Market in Crypto Assets regulation (MiCA) practices across the EUmember states. ESMA states that the briefing, developed in close cooperation with National Competent Authorities (NCAs), promotes convergence and prevents regulatory arbitrage, providing concrete guidance about the expectations on applicant Crypto Asset Service Providers (CASPs), and on NCAs when they are processing the authorisation requests. For example, the briefing contains clear guidance on: • Substance and governance and the ability of CASPs offering their service in the EU to operate autonomously and with sufficient in-country personnel; • Outsourcing and the effective limits to set regarding the externalisation of functions and services; and • Suitability of personnel and the importance for CASPs, and particularly its executive management, to demonstrate effective technical knowledge of the crypto ecosystem. ESMA says that the guidance in the briefing helps NCAs, applicants and the general public to operationalise MiCA and RTS obligations into concrete controls and checks. Link to Supervisory Briefing here SEC Crypto 2.0: Acting Chairman Uyeda Announces Formation of NewCrypto Task Force On 21 January 2025, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Acting Chairman Mark T. Uyeda launched a crypto task force dedicated to developing a comprehensive and clear regulatory framework for crypto assets. SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce will lead the task force. Drawing from talented staff across the agency, the SEC says that the Task Force will collaborate with SEC staff and the public to set the SEC on a sensible regulatory path that respects the bounds of the law. To date, the SEC says it has relied primarily on enforcement actions to regulate crypto retroactively and reactively, often adopting novel and untested legal interpretations along the way. Clarity regarding who must register, and practical solutions for those seeking to register, have been elusive. The result has been confusion about what is legal, which creates an environment hostile to innovation and conducive to fraud. The SEC says that the Task Force’s focus will be to help the SEC draw clear regulatory lines, provide realistic paths to registration, craft sensible disclosure frameworks, and deploy enforcement resources judiciously. The Task Force will operate within the statutory framework provided by Congress and will coordinate the provision of technical assistance to Congress as it makes changes to that framework. The Task Force will coordinate with federal departments and agencies, including the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and state and international counterparts. Link to SEC Press Release here