Suchergebnisse für Haftung der Bank

Bail-in-Bonds

Following the financial crisis of 2007/08, the bail-in has established itself as the preferred resolution strategy for large banks throughout Switzerland and internationally. According to the concept, it is not the bank’s owners or the state that are to finance a resolution but the bank’s creditors. This is to be achieved by converting a certain type of debt called «bail-in-bonds» into equity…

Verfügt die FINMA über genügend wirksame und scharfe Instrumente gegen (höchste) Bankmanager?

In March 2023, Crédit Suisse (CS) had to be taken over by UBS. It was the first global systemically important bank to face imminent resolution since the financial crisis of 2007–2008. Unlike UBS in 2008, CS remained well capitalized until the end. But clients had lost confidence in the bank’s management. This led to a bank run and thus to the bank’s demise. The ongoing crisis of specialist and…

Finanzmarktaufsicht zwischen Macht und Ohnmacht

FINMA has been under constant criticism since its inception; the disappearance of Credit Suisse has only added fuel to the fire. The case of FINMA’s attempted enforcement of a capital surcharge –…

Floating Charge as Security in Debt Finance Transactions

The granting of security by the way of a floating charge is a common law concept which allows the entirety of a company’s assets to be used as collateral. Borrowers and lenders profit from this highly flexible means of providing a comprehensive security interest in debt finance transactions. This article examines whether the concept of floating charge is recognized under Swiss law or not. For…

Zur Genehmigungsfiktion in Banken-AGB – eine kritische Auseinandersetzung mit der bundesgerichtlichen Rechtsprechung

In practice, the fiction of consent has become a veritable all-purpose weapon of banks and other financial service providers. In disputes with their clients banks regularly argue that the client has…

Die Registrierungsvereinbarung – insbesondere bei tokenisierten Forderungsrechten

The registration agreement links a certain right to a token or other informational unit on a distributed ledger. In doing so, the issuer creates a ledger-based security, which is an instrument of public faith equivalent to a bearer or «ordre» security and features scriptural legality. The article examines the function and securities law context of the registration agreement, including…

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,…

Sustainable Purpose-Driven Enterprises

Social enterprises (in a broad sense), including those launched by social (or sustainable) entrepreneurs (or Sustainable Purpose-Driven Entities) are important players to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Developing a legal framework that allows them to prosper has been a priority of the European Commission since 2010. These entities have recently been endorsed by the United…

Wirksame Krisenverhinderung? Das UK Senior Managers Regime und der Archegos-Skandal

The Archegos scandal, which resulted in Credit Suisse incurring losses exceeding CHF 5 billion, stands out as one of the most significant of the many scandals linked to the bank in recent years. It shines a light on financial sector misconduct and underscores the need for stronger individual accountability. Many of the weaknesses in the corporate governance system of the bank which lead up to…

Haftung einer Bank für Geldwäscherei durch Unterlassungen von Angestellten

Der unabhängige Vermögensverwalter X. unterhielt zwei Konten bei der Bank A. SA, die gemäss seinen Angaben für Kommissionen aus seiner Berufstätigkeit und nicht für Kundengelder bestimmt waren…

ESG Considerations and Public Benefit Corporations

There appears to be an international demand among investors for for-profit enterprises that commit to a social or environmental purpose and consider environmental, social and governance (ESG) aspects. Inspired by U.S. legislation, EU and other state legislators have enacted statutes with new legal forms of business organizations – so-called benefit corporations – or are considering to do so in…

Sanierungsausnahme und selektives Opting out/up – ein Vergleich

If a listed company is in financial difficulties and has found a potential restructurer who wishes to acquire a larger shareholding but does not wish to be under an obligation to make an offer to acquire all listed equity securities of the company, under the Swiss takeover law two alternatives stand in the foreground: applying for an exemption from the obligation to make an offer for…

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…

Das Supervisory Privilege für Akten aus dem Aufsichtsverhältnis

The Swiss Supervisory Privilege, which was added to FINMASA in 2016, is a new legal institution. It empowers FINMA to protect documents from the supervisory relationship between a supervised entity and itself by prohibiting their disclosure to third-party authorities and other third parties without FINMA’s consent if there are grounds for doing so that are particularly worthy of protection…

La banque et le créancier prêteur face à l’insolvabilité de l’emprunteur : moyens préventifs et curatifs

In a contractual relationship, a bank, or more generally a lender, on the one hand, and a borrower on the other, harmoniously blend, as long as the borrower complies with the repayments’ obligations arising from the loan agreement. However, in such an agreement, risk lies primarily on the lender. Indeed, as soon as the money has been made available, the lender takes the default’s risk. This…

Das schweizerische Bankprivatrecht 2022 | Le droit bancaire privé suisse 2022

Die Rechtsprechung zum privaten Bankrecht skizziert jeweils die neusten Entwicklungen in der richterlichen Rechtsfortbildung. Tatsächlich führen uns viele Entscheide aber auf eine Reise in die…

Schadensberechnung beim Unternehmenskauf

2010 entschied sich die A AG (Klägerin, Beschwerdeführerin, nachfolgend: Käuferin), vertreten durch ihr Verwaltungsratsmitglied E (nachfolgend: VR-Mitglied), die Aktien der F SA (nachfolgend:…

The Materiality of Sustainability Information under Capital Markets Law

This paper explores the legal concept of the materiality of sustainability-related information under Swiss capital markets law. References to international standards, as well as EU and U.S. provisions, are also made with a view to highlighting the increasing importance of environmental, social and governance (ESG) aspects in the law and regulation of capital markets. We primarily focus on the…

Sicherung von strukturierten Produkten nach Art. 70 Abs. 2 FIDLEG

The Financial Services Act (FinSA) is a cross-sectoral regulation but still contains certain historically grown sector-specific provisions. Pursuant to Art. 70 FinSA, offers of structured products to private clients must fulfill regulatory requirements regarding issuer, offeror and collateralization. Particularly, the collateralization of structured products issued by SPVs pursuant to Art. 70 para…

Editorial

Am 1. September 2022 fand die 14. Tagung «Quo Vadis – Finanzplatz Schweiz?» unter der Leitung von Rolf Sethe und Christoph B. Bühler statt.

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…

Kantonalbanken im Spannungsfeld von Political Governance und Corporate Governance

Like the other banks, the cantonal banks are facing the challenges of increasing regulation, digitalisation and the persistently low interest rate environment, and are exposed to the accompanying competitive and margin pressure. They have to virtually reinvent their business models and themselves in order to secure their positions as future-oriented financial service providers in their regions…

Neuerungen und offene Fragen der revidierten Geldwäschereivorschriften im Bereich des Nachmeldeverhaltens von Finanzintermediären

The current revision of the anti-money laundering provisions introduces changes in the area referred to as subsequent reporting that have not undergone much examination thus far. However, these changes also have significant implications for financial intermediaries: With the removal of the time limit for analysis, the maximum time limit for executing client orders following a suspicious activity…

Das Desorganisationsdelikt in Finanzdienstleistungsunternehmen

In 2003, a general criminal provision on corporate liability came into force in Switzerland. This regulates how to attribute certain felonies or misdemeanours committed by individuals to the company for which they work. This innovation was in line with a general trend in continental Europe, but was controversial in business circles and in criminal law doctrine. The legislative bodies therefore…

Klimawandel

Climate litigation against companies has increased significantly in the past couple of years, not only in the United States, but also in Europe. At the same time, regulation with respect to climate change is developing rapidly, such that it may be difficult for companies to identify which laws apply to them and how they should address the legal risks relating to climate change and climate…

Das Finanzmarktaufsichtsrecht vom vierten Quartal 2021 bis ins vierte Quartal 2022

Ohne Vertrauen keine funktionsfähige Gemeinschaft! Was für Staat und Gesellschaft gilt, gilt auch für Unternehmen und deren Mitarbeitende auf allen Stufen. Das unternehmensinterne Kontrollumfeld trägt diesem Umstand Rechnung, was sich in einer angemessenen Breite und Tiefe der Kontrollen ausdrücken muss, ohne die Mitarbeitenden auf Schritt und Tritt zu überwachen. Die Enttäuschung von…

Digitale Generalversammlungen und Verwaltungsratssitzungen

The 19 June 2020 revision of the provisions on the limited by shares company contains various facilitations for the use of technical means in the conduct of general meetings and board meetings. What are the concrete options available and what are the practical implications of these innovations? What do banks need to consider from a prudential perspective? After an overview of the digitization in…

Tätigkeitsbericht und Praxis der Aufsichtskommission zur Sorgfaltspflicht der Banken für die Jahre 2017 bis 2021

Die Vereinbarung über die Standesregeln zur Sorgfaltspflicht der Banken (VSB) umschreibt die Sorgfaltspflichten, welche die Banken bei der Eröffnung und Führung von Kundenbeziehungen zu beachten haben. Mit der Unterzeichnung der VSB verpflichten sich die Schweizer Banken gegenüber der Schweizerischen Bankiervereinigung (SBVg), ihre Vertragspartner zu identifizieren, die Kontrollinhaber und den…

Wissen, Nichtwissen und Wissenmüssen von natürlichen und juristischen Personen

Many statutory or contractual provisions’ legal con­sequences depend on whether the addressee knew or should have known a fact. Thus, the question of what natural or legal persons know is of paramount im­por­tance. This paper defines the three key terms “knowledge”, “lack of knowledge”, and “knowledge that one should have had”. Also, it examines under which conditions a third party’s knowledge…

Tokenisierung von Aktien unter dem neuen DLT-Gesetz (insb. Art. 973d ff. OR) und CMTA Standard

With the entry into force of the Swiss Federal Act on the Adaptation of the Federal Legislation to Developments in Electronic Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT Act) in 2021, various uncertainties relating to the tokenization of financial instruments have been clarified. In particular, the legal framework of such tokenization, understood as the association between digital tokens and certain…

Le droit des sociétés 2021/2022 / Das Gesellschaftsrecht 2021/2022

Cette année, le Tribunal fédéral a eu l’occasion de se prononcer sur des questions dont on peut s’étonner qu’elles se posent pour la première fois à lui, compte tenu des discussions qu’elles ont…

Vergütung der Rechenschaft über Retrozessionen

Based on Art. 400 para. 1 of the Swiss Code of Obligations, financial service providers must inform their clients if they receive payments or other benefits from third parties in connection with their client-related services (so-called inducements, kickbacks, or retrocessions). This article analyzes to what extent and under which conditions financial service providers can charge additional fees…

Le droit bancaire privé suisse 2021 / Das schweizerische Bankprivatrecht 2021

Au moment où nous écrivons ces lignes, la Russie envahit l’Ukraine. L’Union européenne et les États-Unis ont adopté de nouvelles sanctions contre plusieurs centaines de personnalités liées au régime…

Kooperationsformen zwischen Banken und Drittanbietern aus vertrags- und datenschutzrechtlicher Perspektive

Open Banking or Open Finance essentially means the exchange of financial data between different financial service providers including third party providers at the request of the customer. From a civil liability and data protection perspective this paper examines the legal relationships between banks, third party providers, platforms and customers on the basis of four possible «model forms of…

Do Robots Rule Wealth Management? A Brief Legal Analysis of Robo-Advisors

What are the legal duties of robo-advisors in Switzerland? In this article, we focus on the legal framework arising from Swiss financial market law, contract law and data protection law. We also make a comparison with European law. We first explain how robo-advisors work and conclude that, contrary to what their name may suggest, they are primarily portfolio managers. As financial service providers…

KI Sandboxen für die Schweiz?

A sandbox allows companies to test innovative products, services, and business models in a live market environment. Stemming originally from the FinTech sector, sandboxes have recently gained importance, especially in the context of artificial intelligence, where they are intended to serve to resolve the conflict between data protection and innovation by allowing innovation while ensuring that…

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…

Der Limited Qualified Investor Fund (L-QIF) – Ein neuer Stern am Schweizer Fondshimmel?

The Swiss Federal Council (Bundesrat) recently submitted a bill to Parliament to amend the Collective Investment Schemes Act in order to introduce a new Swiss fund category – the Limited Qualified Investment Fund (L-QIF). Inspired by Luxembourg’s Reserved Alternative Investment Fund (RAIF), the L-QIF, other than the existing Swiss fund products, shall be exempt from FINMA approval and supervision…

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…

Grüne Finanzprodukte

For environmentally sustainable financial products to be recognized by market participants, sufficient information about their environmental risks and impacts must be available. However, without regulatory measures, there are insufficient incentives for product providers to disclose the relevant information. The market is unable to correct these information deficits itself. The regulatory vacuum…

Nichtfinanzielle Berichterstattung nach dem Gegenvorschlag zur Konzernverantwortungsinitiative und ihre Bedeutung für den Finanzsektor

The financial market and its players play a key role in the pursuit of a sustainable economic system. If capital flows are specifically directed toward sustainable products and services, financial market participants can make a significant contribution to a resource-efficient economy. A key prerequisite for the regulatory control of the achievement of sustainability goals is the reporting of…

Informationspflichten bei der Kapitalanlage – von einzelfallbezogenen und von allgemein gehaltenen Informationen

When it comes to information obligations of financial service providers, the distinction between case-by-case information and generic information is of fundamental importance. While generic information obligations are typically fulfilled by publishing a brochure online and therefore hardly bring any benefit for investors, case-by-case information obligations usually lead to an improved…

Das Finanzmarktaufsichtsrecht vom vierten Quartal 2020 bis ins vierte Quartal 2021

Nachhaltige Finanzanlagen erfreuen sich stark steigender Nachfrage.¹ Wo viel Business ist, ist der Missbrauch oftmals nicht weit. Angesichts der derzeitigen hohen Intransparenz, ob und inwiefern einzelne Finanzanlagen gewisse Nachhaltigkeitskriterien erfüllen, hat der Finanzminister schon öffentlich gewarnt: «Die Gefahr von Greenwashing ist gross.»² Dementsprechend besteht seitens der…

Grenzen der Mitwirkungspflicht von Banken im Verfahren der internationalen Steueramtshilfe

The appetite of foreign authorities for tax data is steadily growing. The requests for administrative assistance related to bank clients are no longer limited to the usual account documents. Rather, a trend became apparent that the requesting states require the banks to specially process such data. Against this background, it is important to determine the limits of duty of banks and other…

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…

Möglichkeiten zur rechtsgeschäftlichen Begründung von Sicherungsrechten an Kryptowährungen als unkörperliche Gegenstände sui generis unter geltendem Recht

Cryptocurrencies and related financial instruments have become very popular. In addition to the purchase of real cryptocurrencies, several exchange traded products are offered on SIX and other exchanges that track the change in value of the underlying cryptocurrencies. Such adoption in the financial market and, in particular, the obligation to provide legally enforceable collateral in favor of…

Die Praxis des Jahres 2020 im Übernahmerecht

Dieser Beitrag bespricht die Praxis der Übernahmekommission (UEK) des Jahres 2020. Die UEK erliess im Rahmen von 8 Verfahren insgesamt 10 Verfügungen.

Solidarische Haftung einer Bank für Menschenrechtsverletzungen im Sudan

On 16 February 2021, a New York court held that under Art. 50(1) of the Swiss Code of Obligations, a bank may become jointly and severally liable for human rights violations committed by a foreign…

Die Abschaffung der Sachübernahmevorschriften im neuen Aktienrecht

Under current Swiss corporate law the acquisition of assets from a shareholder intended prior the formation of the company is subject to the same rules as a payment of subscribed capital by contribution in kind. An (intended) acquisition of assets occurs when the company intends or undertakes to acquire certain assets of its shareholders or of a person closely related to a shareholder soon after…