National Supervisory Authority & Licensing Qualification Dossier • European Economic Area & Switzerland
FINMA
SwitzerlandSwiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority
Source / Native Reference: 瑞士金融市场监督管理局
- Supervisory tier
- Tier-1
- License classes
- 4
- Licensed records
- 15
- Active / regulated
- 15
Statutory Supervisory Mandate & Scope
Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) is the Tier-3 statutory financial markets and securities supervisory authority in Croatia. It grants and supervises financial services licences across broker-dealers, investment advisers, asset managers, and market operators, enforcing initial and ongoing prudential capital requirements, segregated client asset rules, market conduct standards, and public register disclosures.
Supervises banks, securities houses (Wertpapierhäuser), insurance companies, fund management companies, FinTech licence holders, and Self-Regulatory Organisations (SROs) under FinMASA, FinSA, FinIA, and NBA.
Prudential Tier Assessment
Tier-1Independent Swiss federal prudential authority overseeing global systemically important banks, securities firms, Swiss collective investment schemes, and DLT trading facilities.
National licensing qualifications & statutory authorisation classes (FINMA)
Authorisation categories, permitted institutional and retail activities, minimum initial capital adequacy, and ongoing prudential solvency rules enforced by FINMA in Switzerland.
| License class / code | Official designation | Permitted institutional & retail activities | Minimum initial / base capital | Ongoing prudential & solvency rule |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BankA Art. 3 (Swiss Banking Licence) | Full Swiss Bank & Retail FX/Derivatives Counterparty Licence | Accepting public deposits without limit, retail & institutional FX/CFD dealing, Lombard lending, private banking, and digital asset custody. | CHF 10,000,000 minimum fully paid-up share capital (practically CHF 20M+ plus Basel III CET1 / Leverage Ratio buffers). | Capital Adequacy Ordinance (CAO) CET1 ≥ 10.5%–14.4%, Liquidity Ordinance (LCR ≥ 100%), and FINMA regulatory audit firm (Prüfgesellschaft) dual supervision. |
| FinIA Art. 41 (Securities Firm / Wertpapierhaus) | Account-Holding Securities Firm Licence | Dealing in securities as principal or client dealer, market making, derivatives issuance, and holding client trading accounts. | CHF 1,500,000 minimum fully paid-up capital plus Basel III risk-weighted capital and liquidity requirements. | Continuous compliance with FinIA/CAO capital adequacy, FinSA best execution & suitability rules, and esisuisse membership. |
| BankA Art. 1b (FinTech Licence) | Swiss FinTech / Neobank & Crypto Custody Licence ("Banking Lite") | Accepting public deposits up to CHF 100 million or holding segregated crypto-assets without engaging in maturity transformation (no lending or interest payment). | CHF 300,000 minimum capital or 3% of public deposits held (whichever is greater). | 100% of deposits must be held as high-quality liquid assets or at the Swiss National Bank (SNB); explicit customer disclosure that esisuisse does not apply. |
| FinIA Art. 17 (Portfolio Manager / Trustee) | FINMA-Licensed Independent Asset Manager & Trustee | Discretionary management of individual client portfolios and occupational pension schemes via power of attorney at third-party custodian banks. | CHF 100,000 minimum paid-up capital + Own Funds of at least 25% of fixed annual costs (up to CHF 10M) + Professional Indemnity Insurance. | Ongoing day-to-day supervision by a FINMA-approved Supervisory Organisation (AOOS, FINcontrol, OSIF, SO-FIT). |
Investor compensation, client money segregation & digital-asset regime
Statutory counterparty protections, custody reconciliation mandates, and virtual-asset licensing status under FINMA.
esisuisse (Swiss Banks and Securities Firms Depositor Protection Association)
- Maximum coverage per client
- CHF 100,000 per client per bank or licensed securities firm (system-wide cap of CHF 6 billion backed by member liquidity)
- Eligible counterparties & scope
- All retail and institutional cash depositors of FINMA-licensed Swiss banks and securities firms (custody securities are segregated off-balance-sheet under Art. 37d BankA).
Art. 37d Swiss Banking Act & Art. 16 Intermediated Securities Act (FISA)
- Reconciliation & audit cadence
- Custody securities and qualifying DLT crypto-assets are segregated by law from the bankruptcy estate (Aussonderung) and reconciled daily.
- Approved custodian requirements
- Retail FX and CFD brokers in Switzerland must hold a full Swiss Banking or Securities Firm licence; client cash deposits are held directly on a regulated Swiss bank balance sheet.
Swiss DLT Act (Ledger-Based Securities / DLT Trading Facility), FinTech Licence (Art. 1b BankA) & Crypto Banking
- Travel Rule, custody & stablecoin rules
- Strict FINMA Guidance 02/2019 zero-tolerance Travel Rule requiring cryptographic proof of ownership (signing/penny test) for all external self-hosted wallets.
Primary Governing Statutes & Rulebooks
- Financial Market Supervision Act (FinMASA) & Banking Act (BankA)
- Financial Institutions Act (FinIA / FINIG) & Financial Services Act (FinSA / FIDLEG)
- Swiss Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA / GwG) & FINMA-AMLO
- Swiss Federal Act on the Adaptation of Federal Law to Developments in Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT Act)
Regulatory Reporting & Audit Obligations
Dual-supervision model: annual prudential and AML audit conducted by a FINMA-accredited external audit firm (RAB-licensed)FinFRA (FMIA) derivatives trade reporting to a recognised trade repository (SIX Trade Repository)Mandatory affiliation with the Swiss Ombudsman (FINSOM / Ombud Finance Switzerland) under FinSA Art. 74
Cross-Border Equivalence & Passporting
Switzerland is outside the EU/EEA; cross-border services into the EU require national reverse-solicitation compliance or an EU MiFID II / MiCA subsidiary.
Supervised institutions & FINMA licence records in our database
15 licence records referencing FINMA (15 regulated/registered).
| Institution | Licence number | Status | Licensed legal entity | Effective date | Verification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Swissquote | Number pending check | Regulated | Swissquote | 2009 | |
| Saxo(Global network record) | Number pending check | Regulated | SAXO BANK (SCHWEIZ) AG | — | |
| Dukascopy Bank(Global network record) | Number pending check | Regulated | Dukascopy Bank SA | — | |
| Habib Bank AG Zurich(Global network record) | CHE-105.951.914 | Regulated | Habib Bank AG Zürich | 2007 | |
| NAKA(Global network record) | Number pending check | Regulated | NAKA Global Ltd. | 2023 | |
| BCV(Global network record) | Number pending check | Regulated | Banque Cantonale Vaudoise | — | |
| CIM(Global network record) | Number pending check | Regulated | CIM BANQUE SA | — | |
| Credit Suisse Group AG(Global network record) | Number pending check | Regulated | UBS AG | — | |
| Julius Bär(Global network record) | Number pending check | Regulated | Bank Julius Bär & Co. AG | — | |
| PostFinance Ltd(Global network record) | Number pending check | Regulated | PostFinance AG | — | |
| Raiffeisenbank(Global network record) | Number pending check | Regulated | Raiffeisen Schweiz Genossenschaft | — | |
| UBP SA(Global network record) | Number pending check | Regulated | UNION BANCAIRE PRIVEE, UBP SA | — | |
| UBS BANK(Global network record) | Number pending check | Regulated | UBS AG | — | |
| Vontobel Holding AG(Global network record) | Number pending check | Regulated | Bank Vontobel AG | — | |
| ZKB(Global network record) | Number pending check | Regulated | Zurich Cantonal Bank | — |
FINMA (Switzerland): institutional licensing & due diligence FAQ
Key statutory capital, compensation, custody segregation, and verification answers for compliance teams.
What are the primary licensing classes and minimum capital requirements under FINMA (Switzerland)?
FINMA (Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority) supervises financial institutions in Switzerland under Financial Market Supervision Act (FinMASA) & Banking Act (BankA) and Financial Institutions Act (FinIA / FINIG) & Financial Services Act (FinSA / FIDLEG). Key statutory authorisation classes include: BankA Art. 3 (Swiss Banking Licence) (Full Swiss Bank & Retail FX/Derivatives Counterparty Licence — min. capital: CHF 10,000,000 minimum fully paid-up share capital (practically CHF 20M+ plus Basel III CET1 / Leverage Ratio buffers).); FinIA Art. 41 (Securities Firm / Wertpapierhaus) (Account-Holding Securities Firm Licence — min. capital: CHF 1,500,000 minimum fully paid-up capital plus Basel III risk-weighted capital and liquidity requirements.); BankA Art. 1b (FinTech Licence) (Swiss FinTech / Neobank & Crypto Custody Licence ("Banking Lite") — min. capital: CHF 300,000 minimum capital or 3% of public deposits held (whichever is greater).); FinIA Art. 17 (Portfolio Manager / Trustee) (FINMA-Licensed Independent Asset Manager & Trustee — min. capital: CHF 100,000 minimum paid-up capital + Own Funds of at least 25% of fixed annual costs (up to CHF 10M) + Professional Indemnity Insurance.). Ongoing prudential supervision requires strict adherence to capital adequacy and liquidity buffers.
Does FINMA provide statutory investor compensation and mandatory client asset segregation?
Under FINMA's framework, investor protection is governed by esisuisse (Swiss Banks and Securities Firms Depositor Protection Association) with maximum coverage of CHF 100,000 per client per bank or licensed securities firm (system-wide cap of CHF 6 billion backed by member liquidity) (All retail and institutional cash depositors of FINMA-licensed Swiss banks and securities firms (custody securities are segregated off-balance-sheet under Art. 37d BankA).). For client money and custody assets, supervised firms must comply with Art. 37d Swiss Banking Act & Art. 16 Intermediated Securities Act (FISA), performing custody securities and qualifying dlt crypto-assets are segregated by law from the bankruptcy estate (aussonderung) and reconciled daily. with retail fx and cfd brokers in switzerland must hold a full swiss banking or securities firm licence; client cash deposits are held directly on a regulated swiss bank balance sheet..
How does FINMA regulate digital assets, crypto exchanges (VASPs/CASPs), and stablecoins?
FINMA's digital-asset regime is structured around Swiss DLT Act (Ledger-Based Securities / DLT Trading Facility), FinTech Licence (Art. 1b BankA) & Crypto Banking (Comprehensive statutory framework allowing DLT Trading Facilities to admit retail and institutional participants directly and merge trading, clearing, and custody.). Custody and AML/CFT compliance obligations require: Strict FINMA Guidance 02/2019 zero-tolerance Travel Rule requiring cryptographic proof of ownership (signing/penny test) for all external self-hosted wallets.
How can I verify an institution's FINMA licence number and check our 15 recorded licence entries?
Our database currently tracks 15 licence records referencing FINMA (15 marked regulated or registered). To verify a counterparty at the primary source, open FINMA's official public register (https://www.finma.ch/en), search by the exact reference number and legal entity name, and confirm that the firm's domain and permitted activities match its statutory authorisation.
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Statutory licensing classes, base capital rules, and investor protection summaries for FINMA (Switzerland) are maintained for institutional benchmarking and do not constitute legal advice. Always verify current rulebooks and active firm authorisations directly on FINMA’s official public register.