Taiwan FSC Publishes Guiding Principles for the Management of VASPs

On 26 September 2023, the Taiwan Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) published a set of Guidelines for Virtual Assets Service Providers (VASPs), emphasising the importance of investor protection and implementing measures against anti-money laundering and terrorist financing. The Guidelines have been developed with inputs from industry experts, and also incorporate insights from international regulations from various jurisdictions like the European Union, South Korea and Japan.

Under the new FSC Guidelines, VASPs in Taiwan are to ensure the segregation of proprietary and customers’ assets, establish review standards for virtual asset listing and delisting, and strengthen information disclosures. The Guidelines also specify that offshore exchanges that seek to operate in Taiwan must register with the FSC. Following the release of these Guidelines, VASPs in Taiwan are expected to form an industry association and implement self-supervisory rules.

Pertaining to Travel Rule, the Guidelines provide that the requisite Travel Rule information is to be obtained with every virtual asset transfer, and such information is immediately and securely transmitted. This is in line with the FSC’s June 2019 “Measures for Preventing Money Laundering and Combating Terrorism Financing by VASPs” in which Travel Rule (Article 7) requirements were first introduced.

Looking ahead, the FSC will be engaging with the industry on implementing Travel Rule to the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) standards (elaborated in FATF’s June 2023 Targeted Update including requirements on Travel Rule solution providers).

Get in touch with us (corporate@verifyvasp.com) to discover how we can assist in your Travel Rule compliance efforts.