The next chapter of compliance
The next chapter of compliance
How 2025 reshaped regulation — and what compliance leaders must prepare for in 2026
About this report
2025 marked a turning point for global compliance. From the mainstreaming of digital assets and tokenization to the acceleration of accountability regimes, shadow-trading enforcement and rising expectations around data integrity and AI governance, regulators significantly raised the bar for firms worldwide.
This Quarterly Executive Brief examines the most important regulatory developments of 2025 and sets out a forward-looking view of what compliance teams should prioritise in 2026. Drawing on global regulatory signals across the UK, EU, US, Asia and the Middle East, the report explores how compliance is evolving from a control function into a central pillar of enterprise risk management and what that means for governance, surveillance and RegTech strategy in the year ahead.
What you’ll learn
- How digital assets and tokenization have moved firmly into the regulatory mainstream — and why firms must apply the same conduct and surveillance standards as traditional securities
- What upcoming SMCR reforms mean in practice, and why firms must stay prepared despite continued uncertainty around timelines and scope
- Why shadow trading has become a supervisory priority and how regulators are broadening their interpretation of insider-trading risk
- The key RegTech trends shaping 2026, including the shift toward unified compliance platforms, real-time analytics and enterprise-wide integration
- How compliance leaders can strengthen governance, accountability and global consistency in an environment of accelerating regulatory change