Asset management in Switzerland

The main objective of the enormous industry known as asset management is to manage a client’s finances. Fundamentally, this entails the acquisition and administration of stocks, bonds, and funds. Business in this industry is a good chance for entrepreneurs that are attracted to successful projects. But, of course, any commerce requires a professional approach. In this article, you can learn more about a framework for a Swiss asset management company.

The Swiss regulatory system

Switzerland does not have an extended license that covers all suppliers of financial services. While certain financial operations do call for licenses, others can be carried out essentially uncontrolled. The Swiss FINMA is responsible for previous licensing and continuing prudential oversight of such providers of fin services as:

• banks,
• insurance firms,
• securities dealers,
• fund distributors,
• fund administration firms,
• and operators of collective investment schemes (CISs).

Due to Switzerland’s non-membership in the EU, Swiss financial services operations are not subject to the same laws and regulations as those in other EU member states.

The conduct of asset management operations is governed by specific regs only when such services are offered in link with a CIS, require the trade of securities, or involve the governance of Swiss public pension resources. Swiss asset management companies

must apply for a particular license to run their business in Switzerland under the new law strategy of 2020.

Governing of Swiss asset management company

The Swiss legislation against laundering money, which is founded on the guidelines published by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on Money Laundering, applies to asset managers in all cases as financial intermediaries and such. The AMLA specifically mandates that the pertinent financial intermediation register with and be under the direct or indirect oversight of a self-regulatory entity recognized by FINMA.

Financial intermediaries are required to follow specific organizational standards and know-your-customer regulations and processes as part of their obligations under the AMLA. Financial intermediaries must also notify the policies of any questionable transactions. This obligation to disclose assumes that the financial intermediary is aware of the illicit origin of the assets in question or has a solid suspicion that they are.

Asset manager is

A person who professionally disposes of a client’s assets in their name and for their advantage is referred to as an asset manager by FinIA. According to the FinIA’s draft implementing ordinance, if any of the following criteria are met, an activity is deemed to be carried out on a professional basis:

• agreements with more than 20 parties;
• a gross annual turnover of more than 50,000 CHF;
• the ability to dispose of third-party assets for more than 5 million CHF;
• or dealings with a total value greater than 2 million CHF.

Additional exemptions are allowed under the FinIA and FinIO. One of them states that asset managers do not belong under FinIA’s purview and do not need to seek a license to carry out their operations if they only handle the assets of customers with whom they have “economic” or “family” connections. The FinSA’s requirements apply to pure investment advisory operations, which are still unregulated.

Primary licensing criteria for asset managers under the legislative framework, in addition to the “fit and proper” standards:

• The asset manager’s registered office and administration must be located in Switzerland;
• the managing staff must consist of at least two qualified individuals and implement appropriate internal organization, particularly concerning risk management and internal control mechanisms;
• Having a fully paid-up minimum share capital of 100,000 Swiss francs;
• Having a minimum equity amount equal to one-quarter of the asset manager’s fixed annual costs as of the most recent financial statistic;
• The signing of a professional indemnity insurance approach or the supply of adequate financial assurances.

If you want to establish your enterprise, we recommend consulting our experts. We can propose a lot of variants of Swiss asset management companies for sale.

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