ع
The Financial Services Authority promulgated Resolution No. E/11 of 2026 to implement detailed rules under the Securities Law from Royal Decree No. 46/2022, according to FSA documentation. The seven-chapter text covers licensing of capital market institutions, credit rating agencies, collective investment schemes, disclosure obligations and provisions to safeguard market integrity. A summary on Lexology titled Key provisions summary of Oman’s new FSA regulation highlighted the framework’s role in replacing most prior executive regulations while retaining crowdfunding rules.
Most entities must regularise their status within six months of the July 27, 2026 effective date, setting a January 27, 2027 deadline, the regulation states. Banks conducting securities activities received up to three years to transfer those operations to legally independent entities, although custody, trusteeship and underwriting may remain combined with commercial banking. The FSA adopted this phased approach to minimise disruption while reducing potential conflicts of interest and sharpening supervisory focus.
The new rules formally define investment banking through five specified activities that licensed entities may undertake, according to the FSA. Investment management, product structuring, securities portfolio management, research and advisory services on listed securities, and issue management form the core, with underwriting of FSA-approved offerings also permitted. This structure seeks to expand financing channels for companies and growth projects across the Sultanate.
Collective investment schemes now operate under an expanded classification that lists 11 distinct fund types, the regulation specifies. Mutual funds, liquidity funds, real estate funds, debt instrument funds, index funds, private equity funds, venture capital funds, endowment funds, green funds and sustainable funds comprise the recognised categories. The framework supports greater product diversity to attract domestic and foreign capital while aligning with broader economic diversification goals.
Credit rating agencies face an enhanced licensing and operational regime that applies to both local and international providers, a regulatory summary found. The FSA also introduced pathways for licensing modern financial technology activities and imposed stricter, risk-based supervision that encompasses capital adequacy, risk management and business continuity planning. Periodic reporting on client asset segregation forms a central element of the strengthened investor protections.
Prohibitions on wash trading, fictitious transactions without ownership change and orders placed without execution intent form key market integrity measures, according to the FSA text. These rules aim to prevent artificial price influence and maintain fair supply and demand dynamics on the exchange. FSA officials have tied the overall package to Oman Vision 2040 objectives by fostering deeper capital markets and wider financing instruments for national development priorities.
