GFMA, in partnership with a coalition of leading global financial trade associations (“Joint Trades”), and with Boston Consulting Group (BCG), Ashurst, and Sullivan & Cromwell as advisors, submitted a letter to the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) urging a pause and recalibration of the Cryptoasset Exposures Standard (SCO60).
The Joint Trades recommend essential revisions of the Basel banking prudential treatment of cryptoassets and pausing implementation of SCO60 ahead of its January 2026 effective date to allow for a targeted consultation and redesign. The letter highlights the excessively conservative and overly punitive capital treatment of cryptoassets that is misaligned with actual risks, in addition to various inconsistencies with current market risk management practices. The Joint Trades urge the BCBS to make revisions to the cryptoasset standard to better reflect actual risk profiles and to support responsible innovation within the regulatory perimeter.
Additionally, the Joint Trades provide several non-exhaustive recommendations to improve the Cryptoasset Standard consistent with guiding principles of safety and soundness and technology neutrality including:
Accompanying the letter, the Joint Trades also published a comprehensive report highlighting the transformative potential of Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) in capital markets. This report, titled “The Impact of DLT in Capital Markets: Ready for Adoption, Time to Act”, describes how the overall size and significance of the cryptoasset market have increased, rendering many of the premises underlying the Basel standard outdated and requiring important adjustments.
About the Joint Trades
The Joint Trades include the Global Financial Markets Association (GFMA) and its members the Asia Securities Industry & Financial Markets Association (ASIFMA), Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) and the Association for Financial Markets in Europe (AFME); Bank Policy Institute (BPI); Futures Industry Association (FIA); Financial Services Forum (FSF); Global Blockchain Business Council (GBBC); Global Digital Finance (GDF); Institute of International Finance (IIF); International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA).
-14 August 2025 –
