B-04-29 FINMA Guidance 05/2021

In a judgment intended for publication, the Federal Court ruled on the method applicable for separating bank assets derived from a criminal offence from legal bank assets deposited in the same account (7B_65/2023 of 5 December 2025). In 2010, the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland (‘OAG’) opened criminal proceedings against persons unknown on suspicion of money laundering of assets derived from crimes committed in Russia (Art. 305bis(1) and (2) of the Swiss Criminal Code). In essence, the Russian[...]

In its ruling 5A_50/2025 of 12 December 2025, the Federal Court ruled that the Obergericht of the canton of Zug had acted arbitrarily in lifting an attachment based on a judgment of the High Court of Singapore (Art. 271 para. 1 no. 6 LP). The dispute concerns the indirect jurisdiction of the Singapore court, which is based on a choice of court clause (Art. 26(b) LDIP). Is the alleged debtor bound by this clause under the rules on representation? The[...]

The Federal Court confirms the applicability of the general terms and conditions to the opening of a sub-account and denies that the bank committed gross negligence in failing to detect fraudulent orders (4A_76/2025 of 21 August 2025). The client, a wealthy businessman, has had numerous business dealings with the bank since 2005. The bank's general terms and conditions contain a complaint clause, requiring the client to contest orders or instructions immediately after notification, but no later than within the specified[...]

On 25 November, Switzerland entered the era of Open Banking with the launch of the ‘bLink’ platform operated by SIX. This development places Switzerland within an international movement that aims to promote the sharing of financial data via standardised interfaces, in order to offer customers greater access to innovative services offered by a variety of financial service providers. Open Banking is defined as a standardised model for sharing financial data, which aims to facilitate the exchange of information between financial[...]