New global task force to assess name standards for digital assets

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A new global task force has been formed to examine the possible harmonization in the naming standards for digital assets. The task force will look into the identification of digital assets, seeking to determine the potential benefits that universal naming standards could have on the industry.

The task was formed by the Association of National Numbering Agencies (ANNA), a global association of national numbering agencies. ANNA strives to provide accurate and reliable means to identify and describe securities that can be applied globally.

ANNA stated that the task force would examine the identification of digital assets such as “tokens and cryptocurrencies, blockchain technology and its’ associated evolution and application in the financial markets industry.” The goal is to assess the role of International Securities Identification Numbers (ISINs) in the digital assets industry as well as the benefits that accrue from using ISINs to identify all kinds of digital assets. The task force will target various types of tokens, from payment tokens to asset tokens, utility tokens to hybrid tokens.

This is a big deal for the crypto industry. By being assigned ISINs, cryptos join other recognized securities, all of which have ISINs that uniquely identify them. An ISIN code is the only underlying securities identification number that is used unanimously across the globe and is important in clearing and settlement, cross-border trading and the general identification of securities such as stocks, bonds and now cryptos.

Manuel Alonso, the convener of the task force on crypto commented, “Potential institutional participants in the digital token ecosystem will need accurate, reliable, quality data attributes to make appropriate investment and trading decisions; much like participants in traditional financial markets have today. Issuers of digital tokens are in urgent need of trusted, machine-readable, ISO identifiers and related standards. We have set up the Technology Taskforce to assess the role that ISINs may take to help this process.”