FATF Raises The Alarm, The SEC Sets Its Agenda, and Latin America Acts

This newsletter serves as a curated newsfeed of information relevant to the institutional community, as it navigates the proliferation of digital assets and distributed ledger technology. It is shaped using Thomas Murray's Digital Asset Market Information (DAMI), which provides asset owners, managers, intermediaries and VASPs with the regulatory clarity they need to operate confidently across digital asset markets. Currently covering 18 key jurisdictions and tracking over 100 markets in real time, Thomas Murray applies a consistent approach across ten dimensions, from regulation, asset classification and licensing to digital payment developments, taxation and custody frameworks, enabling fast, structured cross-jurisdictional comparison for strategic decision-making and risk management.

Information current as of 06 August 2026

Global

Financial Action Task Force Publishes Targeted Update on Standards for Virtual Assets and Virtual Asset Service Providers

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has published its seventh targeted update on the implementation of its standards on Virtual Assets (VAs) and Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs), assessing progress and remaining gaps in the implementation of Recommendation 15 across the FATF Global Network. Key findings: more jurisdictions have conducted VA/VASP risk assessments, but the effective use of those assessments in informing supervisory and enforcement measures remains weak; many jurisdictions have defined their VA and VASP regulatory approach but operational effectiveness remains unclear; jurisdictions using prohibition frameworks have not progressed in sanctioning VASPs operating illegally; the Travel Rule has seen progress in adoption but enforcement is still limited, with nearly half of jurisdictions with Travel Rule laws yet to take supervisory action; and since 2025, VA-enabled financial crime has grown more complex, driven notably by the rise of organised crime group-linked scam call centre operations.

A link to the official announcement is available here: Targeted Update on Implementation of FATF Standards on VAs and VASPs

USA 

United States Securities and Exchange Commission Publishes 2026 Rulemaking Agenda

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has published its 2026 Regulatory Agenda, setting out planned rulemaking initiatives across digital assets, market structure, and clearing agencies. Digital asset-specific items include a proposed regulatory framework for crypto asset offerings and transactions; amendments to broker-dealer financial responsibility, record-keeping, and reporting requirements for crypto asset activities; and crypto market structure amendments. The agenda also covers amendments to clearing agency registration rules, the Trade-Through Rule, the Consolidated Audit Trail, Enhanced Oversight for US Government Securities Traded on Alternative Trading Systems, and Transfer Agents, reflecting a broader effort to modernise market structure regulation in parallel with the digital asset framework.

A link to the official SEC Agenda can be found here.

Brazil

Comissão de Valores Mobiliários Establishes Working Group on Securities Tokenisation

Brazil's securities market regulator, the Comissão de Valores Mobiliários (CVM), has established a Tokenisation Working Group (Grupo de Trabalho de Tokenização, GTT) under Ordinance CMV/PTE No. 177 to assess the use of Distributed Ledger Technologies (DLT) in the registration, deposit, custody, trading, and settlement of securities. The GTT has an initial mandate of 120 days, extendable by 30 days, and must submit a proposal for an experimental regulatory regime to the CVM Board within 60 days of its first meeting. Key responsibilities include reviewing the existing regulatory framework, analysing domestic and international DLT initiatives, conducting prototype testing in experimental environments, and evaluating the impact of DLT on capital market structure, including cybersecurity considerations.

The official announcement is available here (in Portuguese): CVM Press Release.

Uruguay

Uruguayan Superintendence of Financial Services  Approves Virtual Asset Service Provider Regulatory Framework

The Uruguayan Superintendence of Financial Services (Superintendencia de Servicios Financieros - SSF), part of the Banco Central del Uruguay, has issued Circular No. 2507, establishing the final regulatory framework for Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs). The framework consolidates the previous two-category structure, distinguishing between Service Providers of Financial Virtual Assets  and  and Service Providers for Non-Financial Virtual Assets into a single authorisation regime, with regulation now focused on the entity and the activities subject to authorisation rather than the classification of the virtual asset itself. Regulated activities include exchange between virtual assets and national currencies, custody, administration, transfer, and participation in financial services related to virtual asset issuance. Smart contract-enabled services are also explicitly covered. Foreign branches may be authorised to operate as VASPs subject to additional information and documentation requirements. Applications for authorisation may be submitted from 1 September 2026, and VASPs already operating on the date the Circular entered into force may continue operating while applications are processed, provided they apply by 31 March 2027.

A link to the official press release by the Central Bank of Uruguay (in Spanish) can be found here.