SWITZERLAND Trends and Developments Contributed by: Kilian Schärli, Reto Luthiger, Andrea Trost and Diana Lafita, MLL Legal
quality, transparency, cybersecurity, risk calibration and strong governance. Digitalisation of financial services The fintech transformation has been driven by a shift to digital and online services. Traditional banks and financial intermediaries have largely maintained their market share by progressively and steadily upgrading their technology. Online banking and financial services applications In Switzerland, online applications that cater to various financial needs, ranging from mobile bank - ing apps to investment platforms, have become the standard channels for individuals and companies to access banking and other financial services. For example, UBS, Raiffeisen and other Swiss and foreign banks offer mobile apps that allow their users to man - age bank accounts, make transfers and view account statements. Swissquote is considered the market leader for online trading services and a major player in digital wealth management. True Wealth, Findependent, Selma Finance and VIAC are Swiss wealth management platforms that use exchange-traded funds (ETFs) to create diversified, low-cost portfolios. Yuh, is a digital investment platform providing users with the ability to invest in stocks, ETFs and other financial instruments through an easy-to-use interface. SwissBorg, primar - ily focused on cryptocurrencies, offers smart portfolio management and a trading app that simplifies invest - ment in digital currencies. Leonteq provides tailored investment and trading solutions for both institutions and private investors, specialising in structured prod - ucts. GenTwo is a B2B providing technology tools for the mass customisation of digital assets. Amnis pro - vides an international banking platform to allow SMEs to conduct real-time transactions across Europe, and Crealogix supports financial institutions with digital tools. So-called smartphonebanks, or neobanks, are digital- only banks that operate primarily through mobile apps and websites without physical locations. Amongst such players, Yapeal, Alpian, Yuh, Fiat24, Neon and Zak lead the market in Switzerland. From a regula - tory perspective, digital-only banks operate in the
same way as traditional banks and hence require a banking licence. Neon is not a bank but works with Hypothekarbank Lenzburg (HBL) as a banking partner. Yuh is held by Swissquote, through which accounts are opened. Yapeal and Fiat24 (under SR Saphirstein AG), and Relio, operate under the so-called fintech licence, which offers a simplified regulatory regime. Online payment systems The Swiss Interbank Clearing (SIC) payment system, powered by SIX Interbank Clearing AG and the Swiss National Bank (SNB), launched instant payments known as SIC5 in November 2023. Larger banks have been required to accept incoming instant payments since August 2024, and other banks are required to follow suit by the end of 2026. TWINT, the leading Swiss mobile payment system, enables seamless in- store and online person-to-merchant (P2M) and per - son-to-person (P2P) transactions via mobile phones, removing the need for cash or physical bank cards. Whilst accepting deposits from the public usually requires a banking or fintech licence, the provision of payment services is usually only subject to anti- money laundering (AML) regulations. Where the pay - ment service or system includes the acceptance of deposits from the public, the banking licence can be avoided by applying the 60-day settlement exception, only allowing a credit balance of CHF3,000 per cus - tomer or working with a bank default guarantee (each subject to certain requirements). In September 2025, the Swiss Bankers Association (SBA), PostFinance, Sygnum Bank and UBS car - ried out a feasibility study on deposit tokens. As part of the successful proof of concept, customer bank deposits were represented by deposit tokens on the blockchain, enabling instant, automated payment processing between banks through smart contract technology. Open banking Unlike the EU or the UK, Switzerland establishes no legal obligation for financial institutions to make finan - cial data available to third-party service providers at their client’s request. The Swiss Federal Council has reaffirmed this market-driven approach and will follow developments to make sure that industry initiatives
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