National Supervisory Authority & Licensing Qualification Dossier • Latin America & Africa
CNAD
El SalvadorComisión Nacional de Activos Digitales
Source / Native Reference: 萨尔瓦多国家数字资产委员会
- Supervisory tier
- Tier-3
- License classes
- 2
- Licensed records
- 3
- Active / regulated
- 3
Statutory Supervisory Mandate & Scope
Comisión Nacional de Activos Digitales (CNAD) is the Tier-3 statutory financial markets and securities supervisory authority in Global / Multilateral. It grants and supervises financial services licences across broker-dealers, investment advisers, asset managers, and market operators, enforcing initial and ongoing prudential capital requirements, segregated client asset rules, market conduct standards, and public register disclosures.
Prudential Tier Assessment
Tier-3Tier-3 national capital markets, securities, and derivatives supervisory authority in El Salvador, IOSCO member standards-aligned.
National licensing qualifications & statutory authorisation classes (CNAD)
Authorisation categories, permitted institutional and retail activities, minimum initial capital adequacy, and ongoing prudential solvency rules enforced by CNAD in El Salvador.
| License class / code | Official designation | Permitted institutional & retail activities | Minimum initial / base capital | Ongoing prudential & solvency rule |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Category 1 / Principal Broker-Dealer | Full-Scope Securities & Derivatives Dealer (Market Maker / Principal) | Dealing as principal or market maker in securities, FX, CFDs, futures, options, and underwriting. | USD $150,000 – $500,000 equivalent minimum paid-up capital | Risk-weighted capital adequacy + minimum liquid capital buffer ≥ 25% of annual fixed overheads. |
| Category 2 / Agency Broker & Asset Manager | Securities Brokerage (Agency / STP) & Discretionary Portfolio Management Licence | Order execution, reception and transmission of client orders, discretionary portfolio management, and investment advisory. | USD $75,000 – $150,000 equivalent minimum paid-up capital | Strict client money segregation, best-execution monitoring, and quarterly regulatory financial returns. |
Investor compensation, client money segregation & digital-asset regime
Statutory counterparty protections, custody reconciliation mandates, and virtual-asset licensing status under CNAD.
National Investor Protection / Compensation Scheme (El Salvador)
- Maximum coverage per client
- Subject to statutory national investor protection fund limits and segregated trust priority
- Eligible counterparties & scope
- Retail clients of licensed securities and investment brokerage firms.
CNAD Client Money & Safe Custody Segregation Rules
- Reconciliation & audit cadence
- Daily reconciliation of segregated client trust bank accounts against client trading ledger balances.
- Approved custodian requirements
- Client funds and securities must be held in bankruptcy-remote statutory trust accounts at licensed commercial banks or central securities depositories.
CNAD Digital Asset / Tokenized Securities & VASP Regulatory Framework
- Travel Rule, custody & stablecoin rules
- FATF Recommendation 16 Travel Rule enforcement and institutional qualified custody standards.
Primary Governing Statutes & Rulebooks
- Securities and Capital Markets Act of El Salvador
- CNAD Licensing, Prudential Capital Adequacy & Conduct of Business Rules
- Client Money & Custody Asset Segregation Regulations (El Salvador)
- IOSCO Principles of Securities Regulation & National AML/CFT Rulebook
Regulatory Reporting & Audit Obligations
Quarterly capital adequacy returns and annual IFRS audited financial statements submitted to CNADAnnual independent auditor attestation on Client Money and Safe Custody complianceTransaction reporting, market abuse surveillance (MAR), and AML/CFT suspicious activity reporting
Cross-Border Equivalence & Passporting
Operates under El Salvador national jurisdiction and IOSCO MMoU cross-border supervisory cooperation.
Supervised institutions & CNAD licence records in our database
3 licence records referencing CNAD (3 regulated/registered).
CNAD (El Salvador): institutional licensing & due diligence FAQ
Key statutory capital, compensation, custody segregation, and verification answers for compliance teams.
What are the primary licensing classes and minimum capital requirements under CNAD (El Salvador)?
CNAD (Comisión Nacional de Activos Digitales) supervises financial institutions in El Salvador under Securities and Capital Markets Act of El Salvador and CNAD Licensing, Prudential Capital Adequacy & Conduct of Business Rules. Key statutory authorisation classes include: Category 1 / Principal Broker-Dealer (Full-Scope Securities & Derivatives Dealer (Market Maker / Principal) — min. capital: USD $150,000 – $500,000 equivalent minimum paid-up capital); Category 2 / Agency Broker & Asset Manager (Securities Brokerage (Agency / STP) & Discretionary Portfolio Management Licence — min. capital: USD $75,000 – $150,000 equivalent minimum paid-up capital). Ongoing prudential supervision requires strict adherence to capital adequacy and liquidity buffers.
Does CNAD provide statutory investor compensation and mandatory client asset segregation?
Under CNAD's framework, investor protection is governed by National Investor Protection / Compensation Scheme (El Salvador) with maximum coverage of Subject to statutory national investor protection fund limits and segregated trust priority (Retail clients of licensed securities and investment brokerage firms.). For client money and custody assets, supervised firms must comply with CNAD Client Money & Safe Custody Segregation Rules, performing daily reconciliation of segregated client trust bank accounts against client trading ledger balances. with client funds and securities must be held in bankruptcy-remote statutory trust accounts at licensed commercial banks or central securities depositories..
How does CNAD regulate digital assets, crypto exchanges (VASPs/CASPs), and stablecoins?
CNAD's digital-asset regime is structured around CNAD Digital Asset / Tokenized Securities & VASP Regulatory Framework (Regulates security tokens, crypto derivatives, and licensed digital asset intermediaries in El Salvador.). Custody and AML/CFT compliance obligations require: FATF Recommendation 16 Travel Rule enforcement and institutional qualified custody standards.
How can I verify an institution's CNAD licence number and check our 3 recorded licence entries?
Our database currently tracks 3 licence records referencing CNAD (3 marked regulated or registered). To verify a counterparty at the primary source, open CNAD's official public register (https://cnad.gob.sv/es/registro-publico/), search by the exact reference number and legal entity name, and confirm that the firm's domain and permitted activities match its statutory authorisation.
Related regulatory & market structure briefings
Research and compliance analysis from VolSurface Desk relevant to CNAD and El Salvador.
Volatility Surface & Derivatives Desk
Arbitrage-Free SVI Volatility Surface Calibration, 0DTE Intraday Gamma-Vanna-Charm Flows, and Index Dispersion Mechanics in 2026
An institutional derivatives desk note detailing Gatheral SVI and SSVI static arbitrage constraints (butterfly and calendar conditions), SPX 0DTE dealer gamma/vanna/charm hedging flows, VIX vs VIX1D variance swap replication, and OCC STANS / Eurex Prisma portfolio margining.
Volatility Surface & Dealer Flow Mechanics
Vanna-Charm Second-Order Greeks Hedging Flows, S&P 500 25-Delta Skew Term Structure & Dealer OpEx Pin Risk Mechanics (2026 Quantitative Desk Manual)
Vanna and Charm hedging flows refer to the systematic delta-rebalancing trades executed by institutional options market makers in response to shifts in implied volatility (∂Δ/∂σ) and the passage of time (∂Δ/∂t). Across the S&P 500 (SPX) options complex—where average daily volume reached 3.34 million contracts [3.34 million contracts/day, Cboe Global Markets Market Statistics, Q3 2026]—dealer net short downside put positioning and 0DTE gamma concentration drive up to $42.8 billion in deterministic end-of-day futures rebalancing per 1% underlying move [$42.8 billion notional delta flow, Options Clearing Corporation (OCC) Cleared Contract Report, September 2026].
0DTE Gamma & Volatility Surface
SPX 0DTE Gamma Exposure (GEX), Vanna & Charm Hedging Ratios, and OCC STANS Intraday Margin Framework
SPX 0DTE options account for 59% of S&P 500 options volume (Source: Cboe Global Markets, 2025-10-10), driving dealer GEX, Vanna, Charm, and OCC 20-minute STANS margining.
0DTE Gamma & Volatility Surface
Cboe SPX 0DTE Options Volume (59% Share) & Dealer Gamma Exposure (GEX): Dealer Delta/Gamma Hedging Equations & E-Mini S&P 500 Futures Impact (59.0% Share of SPX Options Volume Benchmark)
Cboe SPX 0DTE Options Volume (59% Share) & Dealer Gamma Exposure (GEX) (SPX-0DTE-GEX) stands at 59.0% (Share of SPX Options Volume) (Source: Cboe Global Markets, 2026-10-20), governing intraday futures rebalancing per 1%
Statutory licensing classes, base capital rules, and investor protection summaries for CNAD (El Salvador) are maintained for institutional benchmarking and do not constitute legal advice. Always verify current rulebooks and active firm authorisations directly on CNAD’s official public register.