"From 13 to 15 August, Latvijas Banka will host training during which the US experts will educate the representatives of Latvia's financial supervisory and law enforcement authorities on the operational risks of virtual asset service providers and supervision of these risks," said a release from the central bank.
The training program has been developed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the New York State Department of Financial Services, and the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
The training session "focuses on objective assessment of these risks and proportionate management solutions within the framework of establishing regulatory requirements, licensing procedures, and supervision practices."
Opening the international experience exchange training session, Christopher Robinson, US Ambassador to Latvia, said virtual currencies and blockchain technology "offer great potential".
Mārtiņš Kazāks, Governor of Latvijas Banka said: "This marks a crucial step toward fostering the emergence of new segments within the Latvian financial sector and elevating its competitiveness on the global stage. The financial sector is constantly evolving, and supervisory institutions must enhance their risk-based approach to identify and effectively address financial crimes in the virtual asset domain, while also ensuring that the sector's development and the accessibility of financial services are not impeded."
According to the central bank, over the course of the three-day training session, US lecturers will delve into topics related to the regulation of virtual asset services. The training will bring together more than 30 experts from Latvijas Banka, the Ministry of Finance, the Financial Intelligence Unit, and representatives of other Nordic and Baltic countries.
