SWITZERLAND Trends and Developments Contributed by: Reto M. Jenny, Andrea Stäubli and Loris Urwyler, Prager Dreifuss AG
and fulfil the company-specific management buffer requirements; • have no life insurance liabilities except for those stemming from non-life insurance contracts; and • ensure that its staff involved possess relevant knowl- edge of the insurance legislation of Switzerland. Administrative obligations If an insurer or broker fulfils the material requirements to qualify as a Covered Financial Services Supplier and would like to enter the Swiss market, certain administrative obligations must be fulfilled (BFSA, Annex 4 (VIII)), as outlined below. As an insurer An insurer must notify FINMA (with a copy to the UK Authority) through FINMA’s survey and application platform in accordance with the BFSA, Annex 4 (IV) (e), specifying the Covered Services it intends to offer. If the requirements are met and the insurer has a good standing, the UK authority will inform FINMA within 30 days of the notification pursuant to Annex 4 (VIII)(2)(a) of the BFSA. No later than 30 days after this notifica- tion, FINMA will record the provider in the relevant register. Entry in the register is a constitutive condi- tion for the commencement of business in the Swiss market and must be awaited. The insurer is under an ongoing obligation to notify FINMA of any changes (with a copy to the UK authority) (see also the Bank of England’s and FCA’s Guidelines for firms for the BFSA, of November 2025, para. 3.2; FINMA Guidelines, p. 3 et seq., Section II.1.1.1 and II.1.1.2). With regards to Covered Clients, the insurer has pre- contractual and ad hoc disclosure as well as reporting obligations (BFSA, Annex 4 (VII)(1) and (2)). In par- ticular, at the pre-contractual stage, the client has to be notified in writing (i) that the insured is personally responsible for paying the relevant taxes on insur- ance premiums; (ii) that the insurer is overseen not by FINMA but by the relevant UK authority; and (iii) of the place of jurisdiction and applicable law. The latter implies that the parties are free to choose their applicable law and forum. As a broker Although the localisation requirement does not apply within the scope of the BFSA, UK brokers are still
bound by Swiss law and subject to supervision by FINMA. Therefore, brokers have to go through the normal process to obtain the entry in the register for untied insurance intermediaries according to Article 42 ISA. The only administrative obligation according to the BFSA is to inform the client (i) that he or she is personally responsible for paying the relevant taxes on insurance premiums and (ii) about the place of juris- diction and applicable law (BFSA, Annex 4 (VII)(1)(b)). What about Lloyd’s? Under the regime of the UK-CH DIA, “the association of underwriters known as Lloyd’s” is a permitted legal form within the scope of said agreement (see Article 9 and Annex 3 UK-CH DIA). Lloyd’s underwriters, like any other insurance company, may establish a branch in Switzerland to take up or pursue the business of direct insurance within the limits of the agreement. Lloyd’s has been active in Switzerland for over seventy years, authorised by the Swiss Federal Council to conduct business in Switzerland since 1 January 1948. Lloyd’s underwriters are today represented by their “Lloyd’s, London, Branch Zurich” and its General Representative. While the BFSA creates new opportunities for UK- based insurers to sell their products to Swiss clients, it does not directly affect Lloyd’s. The reason for that is that Lloyd’s underwriters are already licensed to carry out non-life insurance and reinsurance business in Switzerland on a cross-border basis (see Lloyd’s Government Policy and Affairs Team – Written Evi- dence (UKS0001), p. 2). Summary The BFSA is a novel agreement providing an institu- tional framework for co-operation and development of financial services. UK insurers will be able to provide a wide range of wholesale services on a cross-border basis with reduced Swiss regulatory requirements. However, Lloyd’s underwriters have long been able to write insurance business in Switzerland, and in that respect the agreement does not represent a material change for them. One of the principal advantages for the insurance sector more generally is that UK-based brokers are exempt from the requirement to establish a local office in Switzerland.
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