Marking a significant step toward aligning rapidly evolving global digital trends with domestic regulatory frameworks, the Ministry of Digital Economy, in partnership with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka (SEC), successfully hosted a special awareness session titled "Collaborating for a Secure Digital Future: Virtual Assets" on June 15, 2026. The high-level session was presided over by the Deputy Minister of Digital Economy, Eng. Eranga Weeraratne.
During the forum, distinguished industry experts Mr. Nisal Chandrasekara and Mr. Dinindu Thewarathanthri served as resource persons, delivering comprehensive insights across three core strategic areas:
The Sri Lankan Market Reality: Evaluating the domestic operational landscape of peer-to-peer (P2P) channels and offshore trading platforms, alongside a rigorous assessment of the economic and structural risks inherent to entirely unregulated financial environments.
Global Precedents: Analyzing successful regulatory frameworks and adaptational strategic pathways implemented by established regional hubs, including Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, and Malaysia, to identify practical models suitable for Sri Lanka.
Risk Management & Compliance: Focusing on essential security and compliance protocols, including advanced transaction monitoring, stringent Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) controls, and the integration of blockchain traceability tools.
Furthermore, the session provided participants with a foundational understanding of how virtual assets are created, traded, stored, and utilized across modern economic sectors. This included brief overviews of primary use cases such as specialized investment products (including Exchange-Traded Funds [ETFs] and self-custody holdings), efficient cross-border payments and remittances, the tokenization of real-world assets, and capital formation for emerging startups through strategic token issuance.
The benchmark event was attended by a distinguished gathering of senior officials and policy leaders, including Chief Advisor to the President on Digital Economy, Dr. Hans Wijayasuriya; Secretary to the Ministry of Digital Economy, Mr. Waruna Sri Dhanapala; SEC Chairman, Snr. Prof. Hareendra Dissabandara; and Director of the Financial Intelligence Unit , Dr. Subhani Keerthirathne. Key executive representatives from the Colombo Stock Exchange, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, and the Ministry of Digital Economy were also present throughout the deliberations.
