International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO)

What Is the International Organization of Securities Commissions?

The International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) is a global cooperative of securities regulatory agencies that aims to establish and maintain worldwide standards for efficient, orderly and fair markets. The stated goals of the IOSCO are to:

Understanding the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO)

There were more than 218 members in the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) as of February 2018. Membership is divided into three categories. These include:

The IOSCO is made up of several committees that meet at conferences that take place around the world several times a year. Its administrative offices of the General Secretariat are based in Madrid. It has four regional committees and a technical committee, which does much of the organization’s regulatory work.

History of the IOSCO

The IOSCO currently operates in more than 100 jurisdictions, covering more than 90% of the world's markets, and is considered to be the source for global standards of market operation. In 1998, it approved the IOSCO Principles, which set the benchmark for securities markets worldwide. The IOSCO has since released a methodology for how to achieve those benchmarks. The IOSCO's work has been praised at the highest levels of government, especially in the aftermath of 9/11, as transactions between different countries became something that required increased scrutiny and regulatory control.