Compliance & Regulation

Overview

Regulatory obligations in Switzerland are rarely confined to a single statute. A firm's duties may arise from the Swiss Code of Obligations, from sector-specific supervision such as that exercised by FINMA, from the Swiss Financial Services Act and its accompanying ordinances, from anti-money laundering legislation, and from the rules of a self-regulatory body. Add the practical expectations of banks, auditors and counterparties, and the picture becomes one of overlapping requirements rather than a single checklist.

Our role is to help clients read that picture accurately. We translate regulatory requirements into the decisions a business actually has to take: what may be offered, to whom, on what terms, and on what evidence. Where a requirement is open to more than one reading, we say so, and we explain what each reading would mean in practice rather than presenting a single answer as settled.

Matters we handle

We advise on the identification and application of regulatory obligations, and on the internal arrangements through which those obligations are met. Typical instructions include:

• Financial intermediaries and other supervised entities — determining which supervisory regime applies and what it requires of the business in its actual operations.
• Anti-money laundering and know-your-customer duties — the design of client onboarding, identification and verification, documentation standards, ongoing monitoring and the treatment of higher-risk relationships.
• Cross-border questions — when serving clients or concluding transactions abroad triggers Swiss requirements, or expectations that foreign regulators or counterparties bring to the matter.
• Internal policies, directives and procedures — drafting or reviewing documents so that they correspond to what the business does, and can be followed by the people who have to apply them.
• Regulatory notifications, authorisation and reporting — preparing submissions, responses and communications to supervisory authorities, and supporting clients through supervisory dialogue.
• Governance and risk management — allocation of responsibilities, decision-making and escalation, internal reporting, and the treatment of conflicts of interest.
• Training and internal guidance — explaining obligations to boards, management and staff in terms that suit their day-to-day work.
• Investigations and remediation — assisting when a compliance issue is identified, when a control has failed, or when a client is asked to account for its arrangements.

How we work

Regulatory advice is only useful if it reflects how the business operates. We therefore begin with the facts: the entity, its licence status, its client base, its transactions, its service providers and the jurisdictions in which it is active. We identify the requirements that genuinely bear on those facts, and separate them from those that do not.

From there we work in a deliberately practical manner. We help clients decide what to do rather than only what the rules say, and we set out the options with their consequences, including the practical cost of each. Where a matter touches on supervision, we assist in preparing submissions that are clear, consistent with the underlying records and suitable for a supervisory audience. Where a policy or procedure needs to change, we work alongside the client's own personnel, so that the arrangements adopted are ones the organisation can sustain.

Much of this work is preventive. A policy that is written to be read, an onboarding process that is followed, and a clear allocation of responsibility are, in our experience, more useful than an elaborate framework that no one applies. Where a matter is already under discussion with a supervisory authority, or involves a dispute with a bank or business partner, we handle it as a contentious matter, and coordinate with our colleagues in Litigation & Disputes where proceedings are contemplated. Matters with a substantial cross-border dimension are handled with our International Matters practice.

Who we assist

• Financial intermediaries and other supervised entities, together with those preparing for authorisation or registration.
• Companies and partnerships whose size or sector brings them within Swiss regulatory expectations, including internal documentation and reporting duties.
• Asset managers, fiduciaries and providers of financial services to private clients.
• Boards, management and compliance functions seeking a considered view on a specific decision or on their overall framework.
• Swiss entities belonging to international groups, where local requirements must sit alongside group policies.
• Private clients with substantial or cross-border affairs, where documentation and source-of-funds questions arise.

The scope of support depends on the matter, and on where the balance between legal analysis and practical implementation lies. Some instructions are limited to a single question. Others extend to a review of the client's arrangements as a whole. Both are approached on the same basis: a clear understanding of the relevant requirements, and advice the client can act upon.

Getting in touch

If you would like to discuss a regulatory question, an internal policy, or your arrangements more generally, you are welcome to contact our office. Initial enquiries are treated in confidence.

Related practice areas: Banking & Finance · Corporate & Commercial · Private Clients