SECP opens third sandbox

ISLAMABAD: Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) on Tuesday announced launch of third cohort of its regulatory sandbox to spur innovation in its regulated sectors.

The deadline for applications submission is May 31, 2022. The sandbox is a tailored regulatory environment that allows entities to conduct limited scale live tests of innovative products, services, processes, and business models in a controlled environment.

According to SECP, in the third cohort, preference would be given to ideas related to digital-only asset management companies, digital platforms for private placement of debt instruments, AI based algorithmic trading platform, and gender specific facilitation.

In previous two cohorts, SECP ran with ideas in areas of security token offerings (STOs), blockchain/distributed ledger solutions for capital markets, digital identity/AML/KYC, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning and robotic processes automation based solutions.

The facilitation would include but not limited to women specific exchange traded funds (ETFs), AI and data analytics-based credit scoring, and other decision making. The regulator also encouraged female entrepreneurs and teams with leading female participants to apply.

Applications for business models already approved/disapproved by SECP in the first and second cohort would generally not be accepted for evaluation in the third cohort, it added.

SECP stated that successful applicants would be allowed to test and experiment their innovative ideas and solutions generally for a period of not more than six months.

Upon completion of experimentation period, the entities registered in Sandbox will submit detailed completion report to SECP, following which future course of action for the tested solutions will be determined. Details for submitting applications are available at SECP website.