Switzerland: Financial Sector Stability Assessment; imf country Report 14/143; April 16, 2014

C. Securities 
63. Switzerland has made progress addressing the recommendations from the IOSCO 
assessment of the 2001–02 FSAP. Major achievements include establishing the Federal Audit 
Oversight Authority (FAOA) to supervise and enforce compliance with audit quality and 
independence requirements. The Collective Investment Schemes Act (CISA) has recently been 
revised and provides a strengthened framework for regulating and supervising the offering and 
management of collective investment schemes (CIS). Discussions about the regulation and 
supervision of independent asset managers are gaining momentum, and offers of unlisted 
securities and of some other currently unregulated products are to be regulated in the upcoming 
Federal Financial Services Act (FFSA). Switzerland is preparing to introduce a new legislative 
framework for operators of financial market infrastructures and exchanges. The FDF should ensure 
that these proposals are taken forward as soon as possible.

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SWITZERLAND
32 
INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND
64. FINMA has further developed its risk-based supervisory system, applied to entities 
active in securities markets. Less systemic and/or less risky entities are subject to less intrusive 
supervision that continues to largely rely on annual audits conducted by auditors. FINMA is 
gradually increasing the intensity of its own direct supervision of the more systemic and riskier 
entities. However, the approaches taken across various FINMA divisions differ. For example, non-
bank securities dealers are subject to relatively limited supervision, whereas other entities (such as 
fund management companies and CIS asset managers) are expected to become subject to more 
intrusive supervision. FINMA’s own supervisory reviews largely remain to be introduced, apart from 
some thematic reviews conducted on banks’ securities activities, such as investment banking and 
wealth management. FINMA should ensure that its supervisory approach covers all supervised 
entities with similar risk characteristics in a consistent manner and that supervision of the conduct 
of business of banks and securities dealers is enhanced.