Suchergebnisse für Finanzmarktregulierung

FIDLEG-Verhaltenspflichten: Umsetzungsfragen und Weiterentwicklung nach der initialen Umsetzungsphase

Since the transitional period of the Financial Services Act (FinSA) expired on 31 December 2021, financial service providers have gained more than two years of experience with the new, cross-sectoral regulation. In practice, as well as through the first audits that have now taken place, it has become clear that many fundamental (interpretation) questions relating to the conduct duties of the…

Marktzutritt für Schweizer Banken in Deutschland – wieder aktuell

Swiss banks are actively seeking simplified market access in Germany. While in recent years the so-called simplified exemption procedure has become quieter and some Swiss banks have even returned their exemptions, it seems that with Zürcher Kantonalbank (ZKB) having successfully procured a simplified exemption under the German Banking Act last year, that there has been new impetus for these…

Das Finanzmarktaufsichtsrecht vom vierten Quartal 2022 bis ins vierte Quartal 2023

Ob gross oder klein, vor den Marktkräften sind sie alle gleich! Auch die ganz Grossen – «global systemically important financial institutions» (G-SIFIs)¹ – können straucheln, mit viel Getöse,…

Börsenrechtliche Meldepflicht nach Art. 120 FinfraG bei kollektiven Kapitalanlagen

Die Gesellschaft A. (Gesuchstellerin, Beschwerdeführerin 1) mit Sitz in den USA und ihre Tochtergesellschaften sind in der Vermögensverwaltung sowie in der Schaffung und im Vertrieb von kollektiven…

Berücksichtigung von ESG-Präferenzen im Finanzdienstleistungs­geschäft

On 1 January 2023, the Swiss Bankers Association’s «Guidelines for the financial service providers on the integration of ESG-preferences and ESG-risks into investment advice and portfolio management» entered into force. This marks the first binding Swiss (self-)regulation on Sustainable Finance at the point of sale. One of the key amendments includes the financial service providers’ duty to…

Decentralized Exchanges: Grundlagen, Risiken und ausgewählte aufsichtsrechtliche Aspekte

Decentralized exchanges (DEX) enable traders to interact directly and to exchange their digital assets – such as cryptocurrencies – on a peer-to-peer basis without needing to trust an intermediary or each other. This article first delves into the functioning of DEX with a focus on their price-finding mechanisms. Subsequently, it outlines the main risks of DEX and gives an overview of certain…

Die Governance von PostFinance – Zwischen Grundversorgungsauftrag, Systemrelevanz und Kreditverbot

This article deals with the governance of PostFinance, a financial institute held by the Swiss Post. PostFinance has on one hand a service obligation for basic payment transaction services. On the other hand, PostFinance is banned from the credit and mortgage business and has to operate on a restricted business model. On top, PostFinance is qualified as a systemically important financial…

Missmanagement im Bankensektor und die FINMA-Gewährsprüfung

This article addresses the following questions: Can the fitness and propriety audit of bank managers deliver what it promises? How could the fitness and propriety audit be improved within the framework of the existing legal basis or, if necessary, by means of new or adapted regulations? The tension between FINMA’s supervisory procedure on the one hand and criminal proceedings on the other hand…

Open Finance und Decentralized Finance – Entwicklungen in einem disruptiven Finanzmarktumfeld

The recent technological developments not only impact society in general but they also strongly influence financial markets, even in a disruptive way. Open finance and decentralized finance cause an opening of the financial ecosystem and challenge existing notions; for example, new concepts are needed for the regulation of data access/portability and of digital identity as well as for the…

EU-Product-Governance – Ein Vorbild für die Schweiz?

In 2020 the Financial Services Act (FinSA) entered into force. The provisions on rules of conduct and organizational duties are more or less based on the provisions of MiFID II. However, the regulatory complex on product governance has not been adopted by the Swiss legislator. This article examines whether this decision was convincing. As a result, it turns out to be wise, because the EU-product…

DLT-basierte Finanzprodukte

DLT-based financial products are digitally created assets that can be transferred and stored on a Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) infrastructure. Internationally, such digitally stored «tokens» are mostly referred to as «crypto assets»; however, there is still a lack of recognized, clear and internationally uniform definitions. Parallel to the spread of crypto assets being treated according…

Regulierung von künstlicher Intelligenz für FinTech-Anwendungen

New methods of artificial intelligence represent one of the greatest promises and most prospective developments of digitalisation. Artificial intelligence has already enabled numerous innovative applications in the areas of image recognition, medicine, language and mobility, and it is also increasingly being used in the financial market, on which this article focuses. In addition to great…

Zivilrechtliche Aspekte von Geschäftsabwicklungen auf DLT-Handelsplattformen

Following FINMA’s definition of the framework conditions for the creation of digital assets (tokens) under financial market law, the DLT Act of September 2020 has now also clarified legal issues relating to the transfer of and trading in such assets. Thanks to the newly created normative order, business transactions on DLT trading platforms can be conducted in a largely legally secure manner…

Daten-Governance und Cloud Banking im neuen Datenschutzrechtsumfeld

Banking is a data-sensitive business. With the adoption of the new Data Protection Act the data protection level will also be increased in Switzerland, amongst others in the data security context. Banks, often using cloud services for efficiency reasons, will have to adapt their data governance framework in the near future: Data processing and storing must meet the data protection and data…

Angemessenheits- und Eignungsprüfung nach FIDLEG

On 1 January 2020 the Financial Services Act (FinSA) entered into force. Depending on the service offered the new supervisory law obliges investment advisors and portfolio managers to conduct an appropriateness test or a suitability test. This article evaluates the new regime and compares it with the relevant contractual duties and the provisions of the European supervisory law.

Das Finanzmarktaufsichtsrecht vom vierten Quartal 2019 bis ins vierte Quartal 2020

Die FINMA ist verpflichtet, sich an strategischen Zielen zu orientieren.¹ 2021 bricht die nächste dreijährige Strategieperiode an; der Bundesrat hat die Ziele im November 2020 genehmigt.² Aus den strategischen Zielen ergeben sich die Leitlinien für die operative Tätigkeit der FINMA. Erstmals finden sich in einem separaten Dokument zu den einzelnen strategischen Zielen «Schwerpunkte der Umsetzung…

Selektives opting-up und die öffentliche Angebotspflicht

Die MCH Group AG (die «MCH Group») ist eine Aktiengesellschaft mit Sitz in Basel, deren Aktien an der SIX Swiss Exchange (die «SIX») kotiert sind. Die MCH Group bezweckt in erster Linie den Erwerb, die Veräusserung und die Verwaltung von Beteiligungen und die Finanzierung von in- und ausländischen Unternehmen des Messe- und Kongressbereiches und verwandter Geschäftszweige sowie die Überwachung…

Der Kundenschutz und die FINMA – heute und morgen

To effectively protect financial market clients, an integrated approach combining prudential and conduct supervision is most conducive to achieving the desired results. It has already been applied in principles-based Swiss financial market regulation and supervision and is practised in a risk-oriented manner. Besides public financial market law, further aspects such as civil law and criminal law…

Stärkung der Ombudsstelle

With the coming into force of the Financial Services Act (FinSA) and the Financial Institutions Act (FinIA), the ombudsman will be strengthened by being regulated by law and by obliging the financial…

Die (neuen) Pflichten im Execution-only-Geschäft: Zusammenspiel von FIDLEG und OR

As a part of the new financial markets architecture, the Financial Services Act (FinSA) entered into force on 1 January 2020. It introduces unified rules for offering financial services and…

Grenzüberschreitendes Angebot von Finanzdienstleistungen und -produkten? Die Eidgenossenschaft schlägt zurück

Until recently, Switzerland applied a strict territorial approach to regulating financial services with a handful of a notable exceptions. After facing protectionist movements from other…

Licht und Schatten der geplanten Reform der Einlagensicherung

The Swiss deposit insurance scheme is currently under review. In spring 2019, the Federal Council proposed a reform of the existing scheme and conducted a public consultation. In their comments, the…

Das Finanzmarktaufsichtsrecht vom vierten Quartal 2018 bis ins vierte Quartal 2019

Die «Eidgenössische Finanzmarktaufsicht (FINMA)»¹ wurde auf den 1. Januar 2009 aus der Taufe gehoben² bei widrigen Umständen. Die Grossbank UBS war in Schieflage und einer ihrer ehemaligen Top-Manager Präsident der FINMA. Die neue Behörde war zunächst bloss formell neu, weil sie aus drei Vorgängerbehörden geformt wurde: Eidgenössische Bankenkommission (EBK), Bundesamt für Privatversicherungen …

Crowdinvesting mittels Initial Coin Offering – Regulierungsaufgaben im -Token-Universum

Initial coin offerings (ICOs) are a phenomenon with similar characteristics as the cryptocurrency boom. Projects that typically have no history of producing a product or revenue raise capital by issuing their own tokens to investors. Therefore, the Federal Council adopted in December 2018 a report on the legal framework for blockchain and distributed ledger technology (DLT) in the financial…

Fortress Europe: Die Äquivalenzverfahren der EU im Bereich der Finanzdienstleistungen

The European Union is by far the most important ­market for Swiss cross-border financial services. So far, the key strategy for market access has been to tailor Swiss financial regulation so as to achieve equivalence with EU law. However, the analysis of the current equivalence procedures reveals that equivalence is not the door opener one had hoped for. Core activities such as deposit-taking,…

Editorial

FIDLEG, FINIG, Anlegerschutz, Kundenberatung und internationale Harmonisierung sind gewichtige Kern­themen der neueren Finanzmarktregulierung. Die Eidgenössischen Räte haben die beiden neuen…

Das FIDLEG-Prospektrecht ante portas – Guter Anlegerschutz?

The new Financial Services Act (FinSA) will introduce Switzerland’s first comprehensive prospectus regime. While conceptually modeled after the European Union’s Prospectus Directive and its recent replacement, the Prospectus Regulation, the new Swiss prospectus regime employs traditional Swiss legislation techniques and, constructively, abstains from specifically regulating every detail. The…

Editorial

Am 23. August 2018 feierte die Tagung «Quo Vadis – Finanzplatz Schweiz?» ihr zehnjähriges Jubiläum. Die beiden Tagungsleiter, Peter Nobel und Rolf H. ­Weber, nahmen dies zum Anlass, die Leitung…

Ist die neue Finanzmarkt­regulierung funktionsfähig?

The article describes the causes of financial market crises. It assesses the advantages and disadvantages of the legislative measures taken since the crisis of 2007/­2008. Finally, it outlines what additional or alternative measures could be taken to increase the stability of the financial markets and to improve supervision.

Sanktionen

Access to the EU Single Market has always been a key concern of Swiss financial market policy. However, in the aftermath of the crisis, the EU has considerably tightened its third country regime by requiring a demonstration of «equivalent regulatory and supervisory frameworks». Given that the EU has recently implemented tougher sanctions throughout its Single Rulebook, obtaining favorable …

Automatischer Informationsaustausch: das Ende des steuerlichen Bankgeheimnisses?

Fundamental changes occurred in Swiss international tax law since 2009. These changes directly effected and fundamentally limited the scope of traditional Swiss banking secrecy with regard to foreign clients and foreign tax authorities. This paper analyses if, from a legal and practical perspective, anything remains of traditional Swiss «tax banking secrecy». The conclusion is that there are…

Führen die neuen Technologien zur Disruption der Finanzmarktregulierung?

Technological developments and respective changes in business models require adaptations of the financial regulations. The need to adopt risk-oriented rules has become apparent already some time ago. Recently, regulators acknowledged the desirability of introducing innovation-supporting rules (for FinTech enterprises). The most disruptive effects, however, come from the new distributed ledger…

Editorial | Éditorial

Am 24. August 2017 fand die neunte Tagung «Quo Vadis – Finanzplatz Schweiz?» statt. Das Tagungs­thema «Vertrauen im Finanzmarkt – Schlagwort oder reale Grundlage?» bezweckte bewusst die Diskussion…

Vertrauen im Finanzmarktrecht aus öffentlich-rechtlicher Sicht

Legitimate expectations play a major role in Swiss Administrative Law. The protection of legitimate expectations is a constitutional right and therefore, applies to all areas of Swiss Administrative Law. The Swiss Finan­cial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) may create such expectations by administrative acts, rulings and its various forms of communication. FINMA is conceivably bound to its…

Vertrauen in Geld

Money plays a crucial role in the traditional and in the digital economy. But money only constitutes a value if civil society has trust and confidence in the realizability of currency «investments» (acceptance of money, exchange partner, stability of currency). Recently proposals have been made to redefine the monetary instruments and to eliminate cash; notwithstanding the economic background of…

Kundenvertrauen in Banken

Banking’s most important currency is customer trust. Two recent surveys show that customer trust is multifaceted and includes a foundational, an integrity-related, a practical and a strategic dimension. The strategic dimension is the most important, as it relates to the customers’ trust that the bank puts their needs and interests at the center of its activity. This contribution analyzes the…

Vertrauen im Kapitalmarkt

Trust is an essential element of a capital market. The market participants want to be confident that the other actors behave as expected. Financial market regulation supports the underlying expectations by ensuring transparency, prohibiting market abuses, stipulating various duties and imposing sanctions or liability in the event of breach. The objectives of most regulation, i.e., the protection…

Die regulatorische Antwort auf FinTech: Evolution oder Revolution? Eine Verortung aktueller Entwicklungen

While technological improvements have shaped the financial industry and its regulation for decades, FinTech is the buzzword of the hour. Rapidly developing digital technologies allow new market entrants to disrupt the traditional intermediary-based provision of financial services (I.). These new businesses – in particular those that operate payment systems or engage in crowdfunding – may clash…

Das Finanzmarktaufsichtsrecht vom vierten Quartal 2016 bis ins vierte Quartal 2017

Als Ausgangspunkt der Finanzkrise gilt gemeinhin der 9. August 2007, als die französische Bank BNP Paribas die Rücknahme von Anteilen an Investmentfonds aussetzte, die im US-Subprime Markt engagiert waren.¹ In der Folge profilierten sich die Notenbanken als unabdingbare Stützen des Finanzsystems.² Die Finanzkrise löste eine gigantische Regulierungswelle aus, die bis heute nicht gänzlich…

Anlegerschutz durch Trennung?

Since the financial crisis, the attention of international standard-setters and supervisory authorities has increasingly turned to the segregation of financial market participants’ assets from those of their customers, with the latter being held either together with those of other indirect participants (omnibus customer account segregation) or separately (individual customer account segregation)…

Crowdlending als bewilligungspflichtige Entgegennahme von ­Publikumseinlagen

Die A. AG (mittlerweile: A. AG in Liquidation; nachfolgend: A. AG) ist eine Aktiengesellschaft mit Sitz in A. Seit 2013 bietet die A. AG interessierten Kunden die Möglichkeit eines «Direktinvestments…

Neuerfindung des Finanzsektors?

Although digitalization embraces practically all areas of society and economy, in the financial sector, the use of these new technologies started very early and were particularly intense. As financial products are largely based on information, the usage of such technologies are also the basis for financial systems, payment infrastructures, trading platforms and crypto-currencies. Owing to the…

Risikomanagement in Finanzinstitutionen

In financial institutions risk management has increasingly become a central theme because the amount of types of risk have increased. Apart from credit and market risks, systemic and IT risks play a central role. For this reason, the setup of a comprehensive risk management system (both organisational and also connected to specific individuals) is imperative. Given the increased digitalisation of…

Das Finanzmarktstrafrecht der Schweiz – Status quo unter Einbezug der neusten Gesetzesänderungen, des internationalen Einflusses sowie der anstehenden Neuerungen

The incidents that contributed to the financial crisis and as outcome of this the increase of regulatory density, led as expected also to a rise of criminal provisions. As a result the penal situation for the financial market participants is becoming more and more complex. This overview of the financial market criminal law in Switzerland includes most recent legislative amendments, inter alia the…

Editorial | Éditorial

Am 27. August 2015 fand unter der Leitung von Peter Nobel und Rolf H. Weber zum siebten Mal an der Universität Zürich die Tagung «Quo Vadis – Finanzplatz Schweiz?» statt. Brennpunktthema waren die…

Globale Finanzstabilität – Wer setzt die Standards?

Standards are norms that are used to calibrate actions and behaviour. They are adopted and adhered to because they promote the common good and are in the interest of all concerned. In a world of sovereign states, they are a promising means to create a coherent framework for international financial activity. The process of international standard setting in the financial arena has always been…

Internationale Standards in den Vorlagen zur neuen Finanzmarktarchitektur

The present article provides an overview of the international financial market architecture with a focus on global standards issued by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) and the Financial Stability Board (FSB). It discusses the major advantages as well as the disadvantages of such standards and illustrates their implementation into the Swiss legislation based on specific examples…

Internationale Standards in der schweizerischen Finanzmarktaufsicht

This article illustrates that a general commitment to internationally agreed standards in financial market regulation is in Switzerland’s best interest. It allows Switzerland to participate and shape decisions in standard-setting fora, thus fostering global financial stability and ensuring a level playing field for all players. Compliance with key standards is also a precondition for defending…

Das Finanzmarktaufsichtsrecht Mitte 2014 bis ins vierte Quartal 2015

«Jedes Modell stösst an seine Grenzen»: Unter diesem Titel hat der FINMA-Direktor anlässlich der Jahresmedienkonferenz der Behörde vom 31. März 2015 «die allgemeine Modellgläubigkeit in der Bankenbranche» diagnostiziert.¹ Statt noch mehr und komplexere Modelle wünscht er sich «weniger und einfachere Modelle». Angesichts des Umstandes, dass interne Modelle zur Berechnung der…

Verfassungsrechtliche Erwägungen zu Informationsverboten der Finanz­marktaufsicht

Im Zusammenhang mit dem grenzüberschreitenden US-Kundengeschäft der Bank Frey & Co. AG (Bank Frey)¹ erliess die FINMA am 30. August 2013 eine ­Verfügung, die unter anderem die folgenden Ziffern…