By Majd Othman

KUWAIT: Kuwait's Capital Markets Authority (CMA) has become a member of the Global Financial Innovation Network (GFIN), an international network that seeks to support financial innovation for the benefit of consumers, acts as a regulatory tool and focuses on emerging technology.

The Network acts as a monitoring tool and focuses on emerging technology. It also aims to support financial innovation, and establish a framework for cooperation between regulatory agencies and relevant institutions that support innovation to exchange experiences and innovation methodologies. It also seeks to expand the scope of work of innovation service, product and business providers at the international level, in addition to sharing knowledge and policies. The network is committed to providing financial integrity, financial inclusion and financial stability through innovation in financial services.

The Authority's accession to the network comes after receiving an invitation from the former Mayor of the City of London Lord William Russell, and the British Ambassador to the State of Kuwait, Belinda Lewis, during their visit to Kuwait in October 2021 to join the network and benefit from its services as the authority seeks in turn to keep pace with modern innovations in financial services and technological development, which is rapidly changing the economic and financial landscape, and adopting technology that matches the requirements of market development and diversification of its tools, which is one of the most important objectives of the Authority.

The Authority's membership within the Global Financial Innovation Network is consistent with its eleventh strategic objective within its current strategy (2018 - 2019 / 2022 - 2023), which provides for promoting local, regional and international cooperation, gaining experience and exchanging information, as well as enhancing the implementation of the financial technology regulation project.

The Authority's next strategy (2023 - 2024 / 2026 - 2027) includes a focus on adopting innovation and exploiting modern technologies in performing the Authority's roles positively on the national economy on the one hand, and the money market on the other.

The Network was established in January 2019 by a group of financial regulators and related organizations in the United Kingdom with the aim of creating a global regulatory environment for innovation, and its membership includes 68 regulatory institutions and seven entities as observers, most notably the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).