The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE) and the Abu Dhabi Global Markets (ADGM) Financial Services Regulatory Authority hosted the second edition of the GCC Regulators Cyber Risk Supervisory College. The college is a meeting of regulatory authorities that supervise financial institutions operating in the GCC region. The purpose of the college is to discuss the role of the GCC regulators in mitigating cyber risk, share experiences, discuss current and upcoming cyber risk supervision initiatives, and discuss areas for potential collaboration.

The college focused on current trends in cyber risk supervision, technology risks related to digital assets and distributed ledger technologies, as well as supervisory expectations of cyber risk management practices applied by regulated institutions.

Ian Johnston, Chief Executive of the DFSA, said: “The financial services industry is one of the sectors most targeted by cybercriminals, making cybersecurity a shared priority. In today’s rapidly evolving digital economy, sharing reliable, actionable cybersecurity information among regulators will increase awareness of these risks.”

Ahmed Al Qamzi, Assistant Governor for Banking and Insurance Supervision at the CBUAE said: “The CBUAE has defined a clear action plan to improve the cyber infrastructure in the UAE’s financial system, as it comes as part of the CBUAE’s strategic indices in which we contribute to various pillars of the Global Cybersecurity Index. We appreciate the efforts taken by the stakeholders and regulators and affirm our commitment towards raising the necessary awareness to further enhance the UAE’s financial system resilience from potential threats.”

Emmanuel Givanakis, CEO of ADGM Financial Services Regulatory Authority said: “As the financial services regulatory body in ADGM an International Financial Centre, creating a trustworthy and agile environment for our stakeholders is at the core of our regulatory framework. We consider the cyber-resilience of our licensed entities as a top priority and are consistently striving to deepen our understanding of the inherent and emerging risks in the area of cybersecurity to protect our stakeholders in particular the investors. In keeping with the pace of change, amidst aspects of increased technological complexity, a key emphasis is placed on our responsibility to promote the adoption of policies and practices that aim to create stable and safe financial ecosystems that are responsive to change.”