Regulatory

On 23 September 2022, the Swiss Federal Council opened the consultation procedure on the draft for an amendment to the Collective Investment Schemes Ordinance (CISO) and a number of fund-related provisions in other ordinances. The core content of the consultation draft (Consultation Draft) is the implementing provisions regarding the Limited Qualified Investor Fund (L-QIF), a…

Swiss law requires the public disclosure of significant shareholdings in Swiss listed companies to increase transparency and ensure equal treatment among market participants. In particular, market participants shall be informed about who actually controls and who is building up or reducing a stake in a Swiss listed company which is particularly relevant in connection with…

This year’s AGM season is marked by the recent entry into force of the Swiss Corporate Law Reform and the need for companies to adapt their articles of association and decide whether and how to make use of new concepts such as the capital band introduced by the new law. While it is too early…

On 30 January 2023, the Swiss regulator FINMA published guidance 02/2023 with which it provided an update on the status of the licensing process for portfolio managers and trustees. At the same time, FINMA gave an outlook on its enforcement activities in 2023, which serves as a clear warning for those portfolio managers and trustees that…

Over recent years ESG (environmental, social and governance) matters have increasingly become the focus of a wide-range of investors, and corporates are expected to comprehensively report on these type of topics. In line with this general development and on the back of the so-called “Responsible Business Initiative”, Swiss corporate law has been amended over the…

On 25 September 2020, the Swiss parliament adopted the entirely revised Data Protection Act (revDPA), which largely follows the regime provided by the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) with very limited Swiss finishes. On 3 March 2022, the target date for entering into force of the revDPA has been set for 1 September 2023….

Collective redress has been one of the most debated topics in the field of civil procedure over the last decades in both Switzerland and the European Union. Recently, there have been several new developments: In the European Union, member states are in the process of adopting national laws implementing the EU directive on collective redress,…

On 1 January 2022 the Swiss Financial Services Act (“FinSA“) and the Swiss Financial Institutions Act (“FinIA“) entered into force. While the FinSA provides for a wide range of new rules applicable to financial service providers, irrespective of their licensing status, and new documentation rules applicable to financial instruments, the FinIA introduced, among other things,…

The Financial Services Act and its implementing ordinance require prospectuses to be supplemented in case a new price-sensitive fact has arisen between the time of approval of the prospectus and final completion of a public offer or opening of trading on a trading venue. Such supplements have to be approved by the competent Reviewing Body,…