The Swedish Regulator publishes Supervision Report on crypto-linked financial instruments and consumer protection

 

On 22 February 2021, the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority (FSA) published its Supervision Report No. 21: Financial instruments with crypto-assets as underlying asset (Dnr 21-3874), which is based on a thematic review conducted by the FSA in the spring of 2020 (Supervision Report).

The Supervision Report concludes that crypto-linked financial instruments, being high-risk, volatile and complex and overall lacking sufficient consumer protection, are unsuitable for most, if not all, consumers. Nevertheless, Swedish consumers make up a de facto considerable proportion of trading in such instruments.

The Supervision Report notes that newly announced legislative initiatives targeting the crypto-industry, such as the European Commission’s proposal for a Regulation on Markets in Crypto-assets (MiCA) (please see our briefing on the MiCA proposal here), may partly strengthen consumer protection in relation to crypto-assets. However, in the meantime, if further analysis shows increased risk for consumer harm, additional legislation to protect consumers will most likely be required, and to the extent that undertakings are subject to the FSA’s supervision, the authority will consider taking appropriate actions as required.

The Supervision Report is available here.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our experienced members of the financial services group: