The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) has issued licenses to a substantial number of managers and trustees, 950 in total. These licenses are the culmination of 1,749 license applications received by FINMA as of June 30, the regulator said in a statement.

The granted licenses were categorized into two segments: 931 institutions, comprising 888 portfolio managers and 43 trustees, and 10 additional institutions, one of which holds both roles. According to FINMA, this growth in licensing is indicative of the industry’s expansion. This surge reportedly signifies a rising demand for financial services, underscored by a notable 50 applications submitted since the beginning of the year.

Swiss Evolving Regulations

The process of obtaining FINMA's licenses for portfolio managers and trustees is a systematic journey governed by well-defined procedures. It encompasses multiple stages, starting with self-registration and culminating in the issuance of its licenses.

Central to FINMA’s regulatory approach is its guidance, which sheds light on its supervisory model. According to the information from the regulator’s website, this approach focuses on risk-based monitoring, ensuring that the licensed portfolio managers and trustees undergo diligent scrutiny proportional to their assessed risk level.

In 2020, FINMA issued the first licenses to Organisme de Surveillance des Institute Financiers (OSIF) in Geneva and Organisation de Surveillance Financière (OSFIN) in Neuchâtel. These licenses enable OSIF and OSFIN to take on roles as supervisory organizations tasked with overseeing portfolio managers and trustees.

FINMA granted these licenses to OSIF and OSFIN in the wake of Switzerland’s enactment of the Financial Institutions ACT (FinIA) and the Financial Services Act (FinSA). Independent entities in these roles must secure authorization from FINMA, ensuring they adhere to the regulatory framework set by FinIA and FinSA, as well as comply with anti-money laundering regulations.

Supervisory Oversight in New Regulatory Landscape

In the past, FINMA issued a clarion call to asset managers and trustees, urging them to take immediate action in accordance with the guidelines issued in 2022. The FINMA guidance underscores a key procedural aspect: applicants are required to first submit their applications to a supervisory organization for evaluation.

FINMA, entrusted with reporting criminal offences, is empowered to relay cases related to non-compliance to criminal prosecution authorities. Concurrently, FINMA initiates its own enforcement investigations.

Two days ago, FINMA announced signing a cooperation agreement with the Italian supervisory authority (CONSOB) and the Italian national bank, Banca d’Italia, Reuters reported. One of the outcomes of the freshly-inked regulatory collaboration is the provision of more explicit legal certainty for institutions aiming to gain a foothold in the Italian market.