Securities regulators from across Southeast Asia have launched a five-day regional training programme in Cambodia to strengthen risk-based supervision as financial markets become increasingly digital, interconnected and exposed to emerging risks from artificial intelligence, digital financial services and financial crime.
The programme brings together 39 regulators from seven ASEAN member states and is being organised by Cambodia’s Securities and Exchange Regulator of Cambodia (SERC) and Vietnam’s State Securities Commission (SSC), which co-chair the ASEAN Capital Markets Forum (ACMF) Financial Literacy Capacity Building Working Group. The training is supported by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Toronto Centre.
Key Facts
- Event: ASEAN regional training on risk-based supervision
- Duration: Five days
- Participants: 39 regulators
- Countries represented: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam
- Cambodian organiser: Securities and Exchange Regulator of Cambodia (SERC)
- Vietnamese organiser: State Securities Commission (SSC)
- Regional framework: ASEAN Capital Markets Forum Action Plan 2026–2030
- Key risks: Digital financial services, artificial intelligence and financial crime
- Supporting organisations: Asian Development Bank and Toronto Centre
- Location: Phnom Penh, Cambodia
ASEAN Regulators Focus on Risk-Based Supervision
The regional training reflects ASEAN regulators' efforts to modernise financial-market supervision as securities markets become more complex and technology-driven.
Risk-based supervision, or RBS, allows regulators to identify areas presenting the greatest potential risks and direct supervisory resources accordingly.
Opening the programme in Phnom Penh, SERC Director General Sou Socheat said risk-based supervision was more than a technical approach, describing it as essential to strengthening regulators' ability to identify and address emerging risks.
He said RBS enables regulators to proactively identify, assess and mitigate emerging risks while maintaining supervision that is both effective and proportionate.
The programme also supports capacity-building objectives under the ACMF Action Plan 2026–2030.
Why Digital Finance Is Changing Regulatory Priorities?
Financial markets are increasingly influenced by digital technologies, creating new opportunities while introducing risks that regulators must understand.
The training will examine how supervisors can incorporate risks associated with digital financial services, artificial intelligence and financial crime into regulatory assessments, governance reviews and supervisory decisions.
These risks can cut across traditional regulatory boundaries.
Digital financial services can introduce new business models and technology-dependent operations, while artificial intelligence can affect how financial institutions develop products, make decisions and manage risks.
Financial crime also remains a concern as increasingly digital and interconnected financial systems create new areas that supervisors need to monitor.
The training is therefore designed to help regulators adapt supervisory practices to a changing financial environment rather than relying solely on conventional oversight methods.
Regulators Aim to Focus Resources Where Risk Is Greatest
Ha Duy Tung, Vice Chairman of Vietnam's State Securities Commission, emphasised the importance of directing regulatory resources toward areas that pose the greatest risks to investors and financial markets.
The principle is central to risk-based supervision: regulatory attention and resources should reflect the potential scale and impact of risks rather than being distributed equally across every institution and activity.
For securities regulators, this approach can help make supervision more proportionate while allowing authorities to concentrate their expertise on areas where weaknesses could have greater consequences.
Building Stronger ASEAN Capital Markets
The training also has a broader regional objective.
Yasmin Siddiqi, ADB Cambodia Country Director, said stronger supervisory capabilities are fundamental to ASEAN's efforts to develop capital markets capable of mobilising private investment for sustainable and inclusive growth.
This links financial regulation with a wider economic objective.
Well-supervised capital markets can help build investor confidence and support the mobilisation of private capital. For ASEAN economies seeking greater investment, stronger regulatory frameworks can therefore contribute to the development of deeper and more resilient financial markets.
The regional approach is particularly relevant because ASEAN capital markets are increasingly connected across borders.
Regional Cooperation Against Financial Instability
Babak Abbaszadeh, Chief Executive Officer of Toronto Centre, highlighted the importance of proactive risk-based supervision in preventing financial instability and contagion.
His comments underline why regulatory cooperation is increasingly important as financial markets become interconnected.
A financial risk that develops in one market can potentially affect institutions, investors or markets elsewhere through cross-border financial relationships.
Knowledge-sharing between regulators can therefore help authorities learn from emerging risks and strengthen their supervisory approaches before problems become broader regional concerns.
Practical Training and Experience Sharing
The five-day programme is not limited to presentations.
Regulators from the seven participating ASEAN countries will take part in practical exercises and experience-sharing sessions led by experts from Toronto Centre.
Participants come from:
- Brunei Darussalam
- Cambodia
- Indonesia
- Lao PDR
- Malaysia
- Singapore
- Vietnam
The practical component is intended to strengthen supervisory practices while allowing regulators to compare experiences and approaches across different ASEAN markets.
This regional exchange can help participants understand how other authorities assess risk, allocate supervisory resources and respond to increasingly complex market conditions.
Cambodia's Role in Regional Financial Regulation
Cambodia's role as a co-organiser places its securities regulator at the centre of a regional capacity-building initiative.
For SERC, participation in ASEAN regulatory cooperation provides an opportunity to strengthen domestic supervisory capabilities while exchanging experience with regulators from more developed capital markets in the region.
The initiative also supports Cambodia's broader efforts to develop its securities market and strengthen the regulatory infrastructure surrounding financial-market activity.
The training does not itself announce new regulatory measures for Cambodia. Instead, it is primarily focused on strengthening the knowledge and capabilities of participating regulators.
Digital Risks Require New Supervisory Skills
One of the most important aspects of the programme is its explicit focus on artificial intelligence and digital financial services.
Technology is changing how financial institutions operate, how investors access markets and how financial products are delivered.
For regulators, this means supervision increasingly requires an understanding of technology-related risks alongside traditional financial and governance risks.
The inclusion of AI in the training agenda indicates that ASEAN regulators are considering how emerging technologies should be incorporated into risk assessments and supervisory decision-making.
However, the source material does not specify particular AI regulations or new rules that will result from the training.
What Happens Next?
The five-day programme will continue with practical exercises and experience-sharing among the participating regulators.
The immediate objective is to strengthen participants' ability to apply risk-based supervision and improve their assessment of emerging risks.
The longer-term objective is deeper regulatory cooperation among ASEAN securities authorities, supported by the ACMF framework and ongoing knowledge-sharing between regional regulators and international capacity-building organisations.
Angkor Times Analysis
From a financial-market perspective, the shift toward risk-based supervision is significant because regulators cannot treat every institution, activity and emerging technology as presenting the same level of risk. As financial markets become more complex, supervisory effectiveness increasingly depends on identifying where potential harm to investors and market stability is greatest.
For Cambodia, the regional training provides an opportunity to strengthen SERC's supervisory capabilities while learning from regulators across ASEAN. This is particularly relevant as Cambodia continues developing its capital market and seeks to strengthen investor confidence.
The focus on artificial intelligence, digital financial services and financial crime is also important. These areas are evolving rapidly, and regulators need sufficient technical knowledge to distinguish genuine innovation from activities that could create systemic, investor-protection or governance risks.
The available information does not yet indicate that the programme will result in specific new regulations. Its immediate value is capacity building and regional knowledge-sharing, while its longer-term impact will depend on how participating regulators translate those lessons into supervisory practices.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the ASEAN regulators' training programme about?
The five-day programme focuses on strengthening risk-based supervision and helping securities regulators better identify and manage emerging risks in increasingly complex financial markets.
How many regulators are participating?
The programme brings together 39 regulators from seven ASEAN member states.
Which ASEAN countries are participating?
Participants come from Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam.
What emerging risks are being discussed?
The programme examines risks associated with digital financial services, artificial intelligence and financial crime, as well as their implications for regulatory assessments and supervisory decisions.
Who organised the programme?
The programme is organised by Cambodia's Securities and Exchange Regulator of Cambodia (SERC) and Vietnam's State Securities Commission (SSC) in their roles as co-chairs of the ACMF Financial Literacy Capacity Building Working Group.
Who is supporting the training?
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Toronto Centre are supporting the programme.
Why is risk-based supervision important?
Risk-based supervision allows regulators to focus supervisory resources on areas presenting the greatest potential risks to investors and financial markets.
What is the longer-term goal of the programme?
The programme aims to strengthen supervisory practices and deepen regulatory cooperation and knowledge-sharing among ASEAN securities regulators.