Digital assets are expanding, bringing more opportunities and challenges for investors and companies alike. As this class of asset represents the future, innovation is key to making it safer and more accessible to people worldwide. At the same time, the limited infrastructure and understanding can make users more vulnerable to cyberattacks and risks. This is where companies need to balance innovation with risk.
One way to mitigate risks is through compliance with the leading cybersecurity standards and each jurisdiction’s prevailing laws and regulations.
In this article, let’s explore how companies handling digital assets can balance innovation with risk, making these assets a viable investment vehicle of the future.
What are Digital Assets?
In simple words, digital assets are those assets that exist only in the digital form. They can be currencies, tokens, and even agreements, but all are executed online. Hence, their value, ownership, and usage rights are digital. There is no physical form or representation for these assets.
The advantage of these digital assets is that their online nature makes them more accessible to people living anywhere, thereby decentralizing the process of buying and selling assets. On the flip side, this digital nature also makes it more vulnerable to cyberattacks and risk of loss.
Below are the popular categories of digital assets.
Cryptocurrencies
Digital or virtual currencies using cryptography for security, like Bitcoin and Ethereum. They offer a decentralized alternative to traditional fiat currencies.
Tokens
They represent assets or utilities within a specific blockchain ecosystem, including utility tokens (access to a product or service) and security tokens (investment assets). Tokens can facilitate various blockchain-based applications and services. They can even represent the ownership of a digital or physical asset, and instead of trading the actual asset, one can trade these tokens.
Digital Securities
These are traditional securities issued and traded using blockchain technology. As a result, they are more efficient and transparent. The advantage is that digital securities streamline processes and reduce costs associated with traditional securities.
Digital Bonds
As the name suggests, they are similar to conventional bonds and offer low risk and low return on investment. A key difference is that digital bonds can be issued, traded, and settled online using blockchain technology.
Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDCs)
CBDCs are digital currencies authorized by the central banks of different countries and are linked to the respective nation’s fiat currency. These currencies aim to increase financial inclusion and enhance the speed and efficiency of transactions.
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs)
NFTs are digital content that is unique and cannot be exchanged or replaced with similar content. This feature is what makes them unique and valuable. In this sense, these tokens are ownership certificates. Artists often sell their digital content through NFTs.
Stablecoins
Stablecoins are a digital currency whose value is tied to another asset or currency. Here, the asset can be a commodity or a financial instrument. The purpose of Stablecoins is to reduce price volatility and offer more stable returns for investors.
Though there are other variations, these are the broad categories of digital assets used today.
Next, let’s dive into the advantages to understand the innovative aspect of these digital aspects.
Advantages of Digital Assets
Digital assets are a highly innovative product that has the potential to disrupt the financial world as we know it today. The key benefits of these assets are:
Efficiency and Speed
Blockchain technology enables faster transactions with lower fees compared to traditional financial systems. This can significantly reduce the time and cost associated with cross-border payments using digital assets.
Transparency
The immutable nature of blockchain enhances transparency, reducing fraud and improving trust. Transparent records also facilitate easier auditing and regulatory compliance.
Access to New Markets
Digital assets provide access to global markets, enabling cross-border transactions without intermediaries. This opens up investment opportunities previously inaccessible to many individuals and institutions. Also, the cost of doing business can decrease.
Decentralization
Removing intermediaries reduces costs and empowers users with greater control over their assets. Decentralization also enhances security by reducing single points of failure. Moreover, it boosts data privacy and the resulting compliance.
While the above innovative aspects are alluring, digital assets also come with risks.
Risks of Digital Assets
There are many risks associated with digital assets, and here’s a look at them.
Security Risks
Security risks are the single biggest impediment to its widespread adoption. They are vulnerable to hacking, phishing, and other cyber-attacks, leading to significant financial losses. The decentralized nature of digital assets makes them attractive targets for cybercriminals.
Another security risk is the dependence on a master password. Users have to create a master password to access their digital wallet that contains their assets. However, when they forget the password or if it gets hacked, they lose access to all their digital assets. In most cases, the loss is irreversible.
Market Risks
Besides security, digital assets are subject to a lot of market risks. Cryptocurrencies and digital assets are highly volatile, posing risks to investors and market stability. Moreover, price fluctuations in these assets can result in significant financial gains or losses within short periods.
Regulatory Risks
The evolving regulations create uncertainty, leading to a loss of market confidence. In particular, the following regulatory risks have the highest impact:
- Determining whether digital assets are securities, commodities, or currencies impacts their regulatory treatment and the resulting obligations of issuers and investors.
- Different regulatory environments for cross-border transactions create confusion.
- Compliance with data protection regulations like GDPR, while leveraging blockchain technology, can be tricky for regulators and businesses.
- Inconsistent regulatory frameworks across jurisdictions create challenges for businesses operating in the digital asset space.
- Failure to comply with AML and KYC requirements can result in severe penalties and reputational damage.
Now that you know the benefits and the risks, let’s look at how you can balance the two.
Balancing Innovation with Risk and Compliance
As businesses, you must look at leveraging the benefits of digital assets while navigating the risks. Here are the best practices that can help you balance innovation and risk:
- Implement strong cybersecurity practices, including encryption, multi-factor authentication, and role-based access controls.
- Conduct regular audits to monitor the efficiency of your cybersecurity practices.
- Continuously monitor your controls and update them when needed.
- Develop and implement comprehensive compliance programs that adhere to key legislation like GDPR, SEC, AML, and KYC.
- Provide regular training to employees to help them meet compliance.
- Secure insurance coverage for your digital assets. It can also boost investor confidence.
- Stay on top of regulatory changes.
- Work with legal experts to ensure continuous compliance across multiple jurisdictions.
- Maintain transparent accounting practices.
- Communicate regularly with all stakeholders.
Final Words
Digital assets are transformative and represent the future of money and investments. They offer many advantages like transparency, efficiency, and access to different markets. At the same time, they come with inherent risks, including security, market, and regulatory challenges. As businesses, it’s important to navigate this road to make the most of what these digital assets offer while avoiding the pitfalls. We hope the best practices mentioned in this article help you balance innovation with risk and compliance.