The Oraclizer team and Horizen Labs are officially releasing the EIP-RCP (Regulatory Compliance Protocol for Tokenized Assets) draft proposal. This proposal is an Informational EIP that defines a regulatory compliance framework for tokenized capital markets—a first step toward establishing a common reference point for compliant tokenization in the Ethereum ecosystem.
Why EIP-RCP
Interoperability of tokenized assets is not merely a technical challenge. For tokenized assets to meaningfully interact across different blockchain networks and regulatory jurisdictions, a common vocabulary and protocol for verifying and sharing compliance status is essential.
While security token standards like ERC-1400 and ERC-3643 exist today, they address only portions of regulatory requirements and lack a unified conceptual framework. For instance, ERC-1644’s single controllerTransfer function cannot distinguish between legally distinct regulatory actions such as asset freeze (FREEZE) and confiscation (CONFISCATE).
The Five Principles
EIP-RCP organizes 31 core requirements derived from systematic review of official guidance from 15 global financial regulatory authorities (FATF, BIS, SEC, MAS, FCA, and others) under five fundamental principles:
- Traceability: The ability to identify, track, and audit all participants, assets, and transactions throughout their lifecycle
- Privacy: Protection of sensitive information while maintaining necessary transparency for regulatory oversight
- Enforceability: The ability for authorized parties to execute regulatory actions on tokenized assets
- Finality: Assurance that transactions and ownership records are legally conclusive under defined conditions
- Tokenizability: The ability to represent real-world assets as tokens while preserving their legal, economic, and regulatory characteristics throughout their lifecycle
Key Contributions of the Proposal
The key contributions that EIP-RCP provides to the Ethereum ecosystem are:
- Common Vocabulary: Standardized definitions for compliance terminology
- Completeness Reference: A protocol for assessing whether existing standards meet requirements
- Interoperability Foundation: Shared requirements enabling compatibility across different standards
The proposal includes a Requirements Coverage Matrix comparing which of the 31 requirements are met by ERC-20, ERC-777, ERC-1400, and ERC-3643, clearly illustrating the gaps in the current ecosystem.
What Informational EIP Means
EIP-RCP is classified as an Informational EIP. Unlike Standards Track EIPs that define implementation interfaces, this document defines a conceptual framework and requirements. The rationale for this classification includes:
- Foundational nature: Defines requirements rather than implementation
- Implementation flexibility: Multiple standards can implement these requirements differently
- Jurisdictional adaptability: Different jurisdictions may require different subsets
- Stability: Conceptual framework can remain stable while implementations evolve
A separate Standards Track EIP (ERC-TRUST) implementing this framework will be proposed in the future.
Next Steps
With the release of the EIP-RCP draft proposal, we welcome feedback from the Ethereum community and regulatory compliance practitioners.
The full proposal is available for download below.
Learn More
- EIP-RCP: Why Tokenized Capital Markets Need a Regulatory Framework – Detailed analysis and implications of the EIP-RCP proposal
- Ethereum Improvement Proposals – Official Ethereum EIP website
