Participating CSA members: Alberta Securities Commission, British Columbia Securities Commission, Ontario Securities Commission, Autorité des marchés financiers
Around the world, financial institutions are launching tokenized products. At the same time, central banks and securities regulators are exploring new frameworks to support innovation, while protecting investors and safeguarding financial stability. Tokenization generally refers to the process of creating, issuing or representing rights to real or digital assets through a digital token recorded using distributed ledger technologies (DLT). One prominent application of DLT is the tokenization of certain financial assets in capital markets.
International standard-setting bodies, such as the International Organization of Securities Commission, the Financial Stability Board, Bank of International Settlements, the Global Financial Innovation Network, and the International Monetary Fund have published comprehensive policy recommendations addressing governance, custody, market integrity, cross-border cooperation, and operational risk in tokenized markets. These organizations have recognized tokenization as a priority area on which regulators should focus. Their work reflects a growing consensus on the need for consistent regulatory outcomes and harmonized standards to manage the risks and unlock the benefits of tokenization globally.
In response to this growing global momentum, the CSA has launched Project Tokenization, a new theme in the CSA Collaboratory. This initiative aims to examine how tokenized financial products intersect with Canadian securities laws, supporting informed, coordinated responses to innovation in capital markets.
Project Tokenization will leverage a flexible information gathering and testing environment, which includes stakeholder engagement, issue mapping exercises, targeted research and/or a live testing environment to support regulatory learning and collaborative exploration. The overarching goal is to build a shared understanding of tokenization and its implications for Canadian markets while maintaining investor protection and market integrity.
The CSA invites stakeholders—including market participants, technology providers, investor representatives, and other interested parties—to express their interest in contributing to this important initiative. If you are exploring tokenization or have insights to share, please complete an expression of interest. If you would like to submit any supplementary documents, please send them by clicking here.