Suchergebnisse für secret bancaire

Le dommage d’investissement et sa preuve

Many civil claims against financial advisers and portfolio managers fail because they do not meet the high threshold set out by Swiss courts for the allegation and proof of the claimant’s loss. This article critically reviews the extensive case law on the topic. We submit that unauthorized financial transactions are distinct from other defective transactions. Following long-established case law…

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…

Le dommage d’investissement et sa preuve

Many civil claims against financial advisers and portfolio managers fail because they do not meet the high threshold set out by Swiss courts for the allegation and proof of the claimant’s loss. This article critically reviews the extensive case law on the topic. We submit that unauthorized financial transactions are distinct from other defective transactions. Following long-established case law…

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…

Cyberattaque et ransomware: risques juridiques à payer et assurabilité des rançons

Legal risks of paying ransom following a ransomware attack need to be clarified, as such attacks are constant­ly increasing and victims always face the same dilemma: whether to pay the ransom or not? Insurability of ransomware needs also to be clarified, as some cyber insurance companies offer to cover the risk of ransomware without knowing whether such clauses are really insurable. This…

Sanctions Américaines: Extraterritorialité et Risques Bancaires

A Swiss bank operating in the US must comply with applicable US laws. Difficulties may arise from the „off-shore“ application of US sanctions. The US sanctions regime is well known¹, especially through the publications of the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)² and through the calls for caution issued by the banking supervisory authority³. This contribution provides an update on the…

To Infinity and Beyond: U.S. Dollar-Based Jurisdiction in the U.S. Sanctions Context

The power to print the world’s dominant currency gives the United States enormous leverage in pursuing its geopolitical objectives. This is particularly evident in the sanctions context, where the mere “use” of the U.S. financial system will pull parties into U.S. jurisdiction even if they are located outside the United States. This article highlights the recent extensions of jurisdictional…

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…

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…

Les nouveaux droits des actionnaires en matière de restitution et d’accès à l’information

The 19 June 2020 revision of the provisions on the limited by shares company seeks to enhance corporate governance with further transparency and additional shareholder protection. The return of undue benefits claim (art. 678 para. 1 nCO) has been modified to offer Swiss companies and their shareholders a better possibility to obtain redress. This revision also addresses the shareholders’ need to…

Das schweizerische Bankprivatrecht 2020 | Le droit bancaire privé suisse 2020

Das Jahr 2020 war in vielerlei Hinsicht aussergewöhnlich. Demgegenüber bewegen sich die Entscheide zum privaten Bankrecht, die in diesem Jahr gefällt wurden, zu einem Grossteil im Rahmen des…

Annonce des violations de la sécurité des données: une nouvelle obligation de la nLPD

The data security principle (art. 8 of the revised Federal Act on Data Protection (rFADP) requires that the controller and when applicable the processor take all the necessary measures to maintain a sufficient level of security when processing personal data, including to prevent any data breach. Nevertheless, data breaches can occur and when so, the controller shall react quickly in order to…

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…

Die schleichende Erodierung des Bankkundengeheimnisses

This article shows how Swiss banking secrecy, which was primarily intended to protect privacy and was enshrined in law in response to the banking crisis of 1931, has been gradually eroded under increasing international pressure and adapted to international standards. In stark contrast to this, it continues to be valid at home. However, the existing legal obligations to inform and report to the…

Big Data and the Law: a holistic analysis based on a three-step approach – Mapping property-like rights, their exceptions and licensing practices

Given Big Data’s increasing importance, it seems important to develop a clear and coherent body of law and to organize the different relationships among all stakeholders and legal regimes that grant different property-like rights. There are already numerous studies on the interactions between Big Data and intellectual property and/or privacy, but less that map all legal regimes, including the…

Trois modèles de contrôle des investissements transfrontaliers

The screening of foreign investment has become a growing concern for many countries. In the midst of a trade war between the US and China as well as issues related to state-owned companies’ interference in the EU, it is bound to become a subject of heated debates in Switzerland. As we continue to live through a global pandemic, some countries are seeing themselves lacking or at least vulnerable…

Mise sous scellés et infractions financières: développements récents

The sealing of evidence is a procedural tool of great relevance, notably in the context of economic offences. The case law on this measure is important and sometimes uncertain. This is especially true in administrative criminal law: the practical importance of this area of law has been steadily increasing these past years while its procedural provisions appear to be outdated. This paper deals…

La fin des rapports de travail du banquier : concurrence et bonus

The end of the banker’s working relationship is sometimes conflicting. The sticking points generally concern non-competition clauses and the payment of bonuses. The purpose of this article is to set out the rules applicable in this area in a way that both presents the legal principles and promotes practical solutions. In particular, the possibility of imposing a non-competition clause on the…

Les données bancaires pseudonymisées – Du secret bancaire à la protection des données

Law strictly restricts the transfer of personal data and data protected by banking secrecy, especially outside of Switzerland. Personal data is defined as all information relating to an identified or identifiable person. Similarly, legal scholarship and case law hold that banking secrecy protects only client identifying data. The ability to identify the relevant person is thus core to both data…

Le droit bancaire privé suisse 2019 / Das schweizerische Bankprivatrecht 2019

Cette chronique s’allonge chaque année. Sa consultation en devient moins aisée. Pour faciliter son accès aux lecteurs nous avons introduit trois nouveautés.

L’émission d’actions digitalisées comme moyen de financement de l’innovation et des PME

Switzerland is a world-leading nation in terms of entrepreneurship and promotion of innovation. Its universities produce a high number of start-ups. Its economy is based on a web of small and medium-sized companies, which make for the bulk of the country’s economic activity. Paradoxically though, the Swiss capital markets are relatively inefficient in channeling savings to companies. Only a…

Enquêtes internes et secret professionnel de l’avocat

The Federal Court recently rendered two decisions on the issue of the protection of the lawyer’s professional secrecy within the context of internal inquiries. These decisions represent an important step, since there were contradictory opinions in legal writings on the issue of whether lawyers’ participation in internal inquiries should be regarded as a typical activity, and consequently covered…

L’[in]effectivité du secret professionnel – Peut-on protéger le produit du travail du service juridique dans les procédures?

The protection of the legal department’s work product is closely linked to the professional privilege of in-house counsels. Such a privilege exists in the United States and many European countries but is non-existent, respectively non-effective in Switzerland. After the abandonment in 2010 of a new federal law aimed at regulating the in-house counsels status and inter alia granting them such a…

Das schweizerische Bankprivatrecht 2018 / Le droit bancaire privé suisse 2018

Das Jahr 2018 brachte einen reichen Fundus an Entscheiden im privaten Bankrecht. Etliche davon schreiben Geschichten fort, über die wir bereits in früheren Übersichten berichtet hatten. Dazu gehört die Klage des Drogeriekönigs Müller gegen die Bank J. Safra ­Sarasin im Zusammenhang mit den sogenannten Cum-­Ex-Geschäften (r34), die Fortsetzung der Verantwortlichkeitsklage der Glarner…

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…

Editorial

Au moment où nous écrivons cet éditorial, la Commission des affaires juridiques du Conseil des Etats vient d’approuver à son tour une initiative parlementaire proposant d’introduire le trust dans le…

Blanchiment d’argent: la banque face au risque pénal

This paper focuses on the main issues regarding the criminal liability of a bank for money laundering from a practical perspective. Substantive law as well as procedural aspects are considered. After an update on the practice of the criminal justice authorities, we examine the circle of agents able to trigger the liability of the ­corporation, notably in situations of outsourcing. Then,…

La communication de soupçons au MROS: du droit à l’obligation

Communication right in case of suspicion of money laundering was introduced in 1990 in the Swiss Criminal Code, despite opposition from the banking sector at that time. It has been completed, in 1998, by a duty to file a report with the Money Laundering Reporting ­Office Switzerland, when reasonable grounds to suspect that assets involved in the business relationship are linked to a criminal…

Le droit bancaire privé suisse 2017 / Das schweizerische Bankprivatrecht 2017

Les services d’investissement (intermédiation sur le marché des capitaux et le marché monétaire) ont une telle importance dans le débat sur la place financière suisse qu’on oublie souvent de rappeler…

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…

La banque exposée aux prétentions de tiers : art. 402 CO et rétention ­d’actifs de clients

The so-called claw-back suits filed by the liquidators of Fairfield Sentry and other feeder funds involved in Bernard Madoff’s bankruptcy have prompted the defendant banks to secure their recourse against their clients by withholding money and other assets in their custody. This article analyses the legal basis for the retention of client assets under Swiss law. It concludes that, except when the…

Protection des données et nouvelles procédures de communication aux autorités fiscales et de surveillance étrangères

At a time when banking secrecy is shrinking, the lawmaker has decided to redefine the role of data protection in international cooperation procedures with regulatory and tax authorities. The law allows a supervised entity, typically a bank, to transmit confidential information to certain foreign authorities and organizations, but requires it to safeguard the rights of its clients and other third…

Swiss Bank Program: Non Prosecution Agreements Implementation & Beyond

The United States Department of Justice’s Swiss Bank Program undoubtedly accounts for one of the most ­ambitious global foreign enforcement of U.S. tax laws. The resulting Non-Prosecution Agreements – signed by a record of 80 banks – were reached after long, demanding internal investigations and cooperation efforts with U.S. authorities. But, these NPAs are not the end. To the contrary, they…

Conformité fiscale : obligations et responsabilité du client envers la banque

The responsibility of Swiss banks and other financial intermediaries in respect of their clients’ and client ­assets’ tax status have undergone a paradigmatic change. Banks need to manage their tax and criminal risks ­related to their clients. FATCA, the OECD’s Common Reporting Standard (CRS), and the implementing Swiss legislation impose strict duties on banks (and ­almost none on their clients)…

Know Your Customer : Quo Vadis ?

Know your client (KYC) is now an essential due diligence requirement for all banking business. The concept only appeared relatively recently in legislation, however, in conjunction with increased efforts to combat organised crime and money laundering. For around 40 years, the scope and content of know your client has continued to expand, sometimes in stark contrast to other standards. This article…

L’externalisation de services dans le domaine bancaire et financier

In recent years, Swiss financial intermediaries have increasingly entered into contractual arrangements with external service providers to outsource certain activities, for example the development and maintenance of their IT platform. From a Swiss regulatory perspective, the outsourcing of activities is governed by two circulars issued by the Swiss financial regulator FINMA. Pursuant to the…

Le droit bancaire privé suisse 2015 / Das schweizerische Bankprivatrecht 2015

Cette chronique paraît six mois après la précédente (RSDA 2015 386) et figurera désormais chaque année dans le 2^e cahier de notre Revue. On aurait pu espérer que cette livraison-ci s’en…

Das schweizerische Bankprivatrecht 2014–2015/Le droit bancaire privé suisse 2014–2015

Während sich auf der politischen Bühne langsam eine gewisse Entspannung rund um die unversteuerten Gelder auf Schweizer Bankkonten abzeichnet, ist die Rechtsprechung der vergangenen Berichtsperiode…

Corporate Social Responsibility, Sustainable Development et Corporate ­Governance : quelles corrélations ?

Companies are not only members of civil society but are also integral and essential parties to the socio-economic context in which they develop. It is thus legitimate to wonder about their role and “societal” responsibility. The concept of corporate social responsibility is the idea that private companies are supposed to care not only about short-term profit in the interest of their shareholders…

La législation britannique contre la corruption : application du Bribery Act aux personnes suisses

The UK Bribery Act is an ambitious legislative initiative and the centerpiece of the British legal framework against corruption. In addition to the classic criminal offences (active and passive bribery, corruption in the public and in the private sector), the Bribery Act introduces a remarkable form of criminal liability for legal persons. The new corporate offence and the extraterritorial reach…

Das Gesellschaftsrecht 2014/Le droit des sociétés 2014

Das hervorstechende Ereignis im Berichtsjahr ist die schnelle und umfassende Konsolidierung der business judgement rule in der bundesgerichtlichen Rechtsprechung zur Organverantwortlichkeit (I.1)…