{"text":[[{"start":7.869,"text":"Tokenised gold would be exempt from UK fund regulations under potential reforms the financial watchdog will present on Monday as it seeks to strengthen London’s dominant position as a centre for bullion trading and custody."}],[{"start":23.44,"text":"The Financial Conduct Authority will say it is considering whether “a bespoke regime for tokenised gold, or tokenised commodities more broadly” could be created along with the Treasury and the Bank of England."}],[{"start":33.901,"text":"Tokenised gold involves creating digital assets that represent ownership rights over physical gold. Gold bars are held by the issuer as a backing asset for the tokens. The FCA believes this could help unlock more of London’s bullion reserves as collateral in financial transactions."}],[{"start":49.68,"text":"“Unlike shares or debt securities, which are already issued, traded and settled through mature electronic market infrastructures, tokenisation could make a traditionally physical and operationally complex asset easier to divide and transfer across digital markets,” it will say on Monday."}],[{"start":67.505,"text":"Industry participants have warned the FCA that tokenisation of gold could be hampered by uncertainty over whether it would be caught by the UK’s collective investment scheme (CIS) or alternative investment fund (AIF) rules, which could restrict access for some investors."}],[{"start":83.766,"text":"The regulator will say it could consider working with the Treasury “to evaluate and potentially introduce a targeted exemption from the CIS and AIF perimeter for certain tokenised gold products, or gold market infrastructure”. FCA officials said no decisions had been made and it was keeping an open mind on how to handle tokenised gold."}],[{"start":105.38,"text":"The UK dominates the global gold market with about 70 per cent of trading volumes, according to industry body the World Gold Council, but is facing competition from China, which is seeking to become a bullion hub."}],[{"start":116.88,"text":"“In our discussions with industry on tokenisation, tokenised gold has emerged as an area of interest,” Jon Relleen, FCA director of infrastructure and exchanges, told the FT."}],[{"start":127.76,"text":"“We’re keen to understand whether existing regulatory frameworks remain the right fit for gold markets and how innovation could strengthen the efficiency and competitiveness of UK markets.”"}],[{"start":138.4,"text":"The proposals are part of a wider push by UK regulators to encourage tokenisation of wholesale financial markets. On Monday, the FCA and BoE will say in a separate paper that industry participants have told them the biggest opportunity in this area is to free up capital and collateral by making post-trade operations, such as clearing and settlement, more efficient."}],[{"start":161.7,"text":"Citing recent research that found US market participants were holding an average of 7 per cent more collateral than needed as an extra safety buffer, they will say industry participants believe tokenisation is “a major opportunity”."}],[{"start":177.007,"text":"The BoE is considering including tokenised assets, including stablecoins, as eligible collateral in its Sterling Monetary Framework that provides funding to financial institutions, they will say. The central bank will also consult later this year on allowing central counterparty clearing houses to accept tokenised assets as collateral."}],[{"start":197.12,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1789368470_2847.mp3"}