Nine virtual asset service providers have received certification from the Trinidad and Tobago Securities and Exchange Commission, following the implementation of new legislation governing the digital finance sector.
During the Commission’s inaugural industry dialogue, regulators and law-enforcement officials highlighted both the opportunities and the growing risks associated with virtual assets, including fraud, cybercrime, and money laundering.
Nine Virtual Asset Service Providers have now been formally certified by the Trinidad and Tobago Securities and Exchange Commission (TTSEC).
The milestone follows the passage of the Virtual Assets and Virtual Asset Service Providers Act in December 2025, which establishes a comprehensive legislative framework for the licensing, supervision, and regulation of virtual asset service providers.
Speaking during the Commission’s inaugural dialogue session with industry stakeholders, TTSEC’s Chief Executive Officer, Kester Guy, stressed the importance of balanced regulation in an evolving digital landscape.
“This matters because innovation without regulation creates instability. And on the contrary, regulation without understanding suppresses the innovative aspect of a market. Our responsibility as a regulator is, therefore, to strike the appropriate balance between these two paradigms.”
However, the rapid growth of the virtual asset sector also presents significant risks.
Senior Supervisory Analyst at the TTPS, Sergeant Marvin Walker, warned that increased adoption has expanded exposure.
“The inherent vulnerability of virtual assets, virtual asset products, is rated as very high. Our high-risk threat vectors include scams, fraudulent investment schemes, corruption, and general cybercrime. This demand for a modernized enforcement response is driven by how criminals use these assets for placement, layering, and integration of illicit funds.”
To counter these risks, he said the TTPS Cyber and Social Media Unit relies on specialised analytical tools to trace and interpret virtual asset transactions.
“OSINT is a systematic collection of publicly available data to correlate on-chain data with off-chain human intelligence. We use this for suspect profiling, analyzing social media activity and online forums. This attribution, sorry, we also track fraud orchestration, monitoring the platforms where romance scams and investment frauds are organized. This attribution enhancement transforms anonymous transactions into actionable real-world investigative tools.”
He added that the use of Open-Source Intelligence, or OSINT, is critical in converting anonymous blockchain transactions into credible investigative evidence.