B-17-07 FINMA Circ. 17/7

Unless expressly stated in the contract, a bank may not terminate a mortgage loan early if, at the time of termination, there are no outstanding payments (4A_599/2024 of May 26, 2025). In August 2021, a bank entered into a mortgage financing agreement with a company and offered a credit line of up to CHF 4,552,500. Article 7 of the agreement stipulates that the debt must be reduced by annual repayments of CHF 52,500, the first of which is due on[...]

A possible contractual imbalance in a credit relationship between a bank and its clients does not engage the bank's liability, even if the bank provides its clients with limited information. These are the main findings of judgment 4A_567/2024 of 27 May 2025. In 2013, clients entered into a mortgage loan agreement with a bank for approximately CHF 1.5 million. The interest rate was variable and corresponded to the three-month LIBOR (later SARON) plus a margin. The agreement provided that if[...]

When the bank makes a margin call, the client may have very little time to react and provide new funds. In its ruling 4A_389/2024 of May 8, 2025, the Federal Supreme Court reiterated its strict case law on Lombard loans, particularly with regard to clients with extensive financial knowledge and experience. In early April 2019, a client entered into a relationship with a bank. During the account opening process, the client stated that he was an investment expert, had a[...]

In a judgement published on 31 May 2024, the Federal Court had already confirmed that the fraudulent obtaining of a ‘COVID-19’ loan constituted fraud (ATF 150 IV 169, commented in Dupuis, cdbf.ch/1353). On the other hand, its case law was fluctuating with regard to the commission of the offence of forgery in relation to the presentation of the false credit application form to the lending bank. The judgement 6B_95/2024 of 6 February 2025, intended for publication, provided the answer of[...]