Mark Steward, Chief Executive of the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), has been appointed Vice Chair of the International Organization of Securities Commissions’ Growth and Emerging Markets Committee (GEMC), a role that also gives him a seat on the IOSCO Board.
The GEMC brings together securities regulators from growth and emerging markets and focuses on regulatory priorities, market development and international cooperation. According to the DFSA, the committee has 95 members and 22 non-voting associate members, with regulators from ten G20 economies among its membership.
IOSCO is the international standard-setting body for securities and derivatives regulation, bringing together regulators whose jurisdictions account for the vast majority of global financial markets. Steward’s new role places the DFSA directly within IOSCO’s senior governance structure while expanding its participation in discussions affecting emerging capital markets.
Steward has led the DFSA since May 2025. Before moving to Dubai, he served as Executive Director of Enforcement and Market Oversight at the UK Financial Conduct Authority, where he was also involved in international policy. He previously led enforcement at Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission and held senior roles at the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.
The appointment is particularly relevant to Dubai’s financial sector because the DFSA regulates financial services conducted in or from the Dubai International Financial Centre, including securities, banking, asset management, derivatives, funds and market infrastructure.
Steward’s appointment strengthens the DFSA’s representation in international regulatory discussions at a time when emerging markets are playing a larger role in global capital flows and financial-market development.
