Demetra Kalogerou, former Chairwoman of CySEC and Financial Advisor at DKA Financial Consultants Ltd, expressed the view that the next major challenge for the development of tokenised securities in Cyprus is securing the necessary level of legal certainty.
Speaking during the panel discussion titled “Cyprus as the Ultimate Innovation Gateway for Financial Services,” held at the Digital Assets and the Future of Finance Summit 2026, organised by ECOMMBX, Kalogerou analysed Cyprus’s trajectory as an international financial services and fintech hub. She also highlighted the opportunities emerging from the growth of the digital assets ecosystem.
During the discussion, she noted that the most significant transformation Cyprus experienced after the 2013 financial crisis was the restoration of trust. As she explained, strengthening credibility with investors became a key priority, emphasizing that “long-term success can only be built on trust, sound governance, and effective supervision.” She added that CySEC invested heavily in enhancing its supervisory tools, technology, and specialised units to enable early risk detection and more targeted oversight.
At the same time, she pointed out that Cyprus moved early in developing its digital assets ecosystem, recalling the establishment of the Innovation Hub in 2018 and the register of Crypto-Asset Service Providers (CASPs) in 2021. These initiatives, she noted, allowed the market to prepare in a timely manner for the implementation of the EU’s MiCA framework. She also stressed the importance of investment in education and continuous professional certification, as well as the creation of the new Institute of Board Directors and Corporate Governance, aimed at further strengthening board quality.
In closing, Kalogerou underlined that the existing European regulatory framework already largely covers tokenised securities through rules applicable to transferable securities, investment funds, and the DLT pilot regime. However, she stressed that “the key gap today is neither technology nor supervision, but legal certainty.” She explained that investors must be assured that ownership recorded on distributed ledger technology is fully recognised and protected under national law. Addressing this issue, she concluded, will be a key prerequisite for Cyprus to play a leading role in the next phase of tokenised securities development.
The discussion was moderated by Haris Michaelides, General Manager of ECOMMBX Investment.
