Introduction#
The Federal Administrative CourtThe Swiss court that hears appeals against FINMA decisions. Its judgments are where FINMA's legal positions get tested in public. has annulled FINMAThe Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority. It licenses firms, inspects them and can shut them down — but it cannot fine anyone.'s enforcement measures against VP Bank (Schweiz), and FINMA has said it will appeal to the Federal Supreme CourtSwitzerland's highest court, in Lausanne. Last stop for an appeal against a FINMA decision.. FINMA is also asking for the power to fine directly. Neither question is settled.
How it got here#
9 March 2026. In a speech, FINMAThe Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority. It licenses firms, inspects them and can shut them down — but it cannot fine anyone.'s president called a fine “in several respects a liberal instrument”. She put the Swiss rate of publishing concluded cases at about 7%, against 95–100% abroad.
April 2026. FINMAThe Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority. It licenses firms, inspects them and can shut them down — but it cannot fine anyone.'s annual media conference repeated the request for a power to fine and for more open communication about concluded proceedings. FINMA recorded 55 proceedings concluded in 2025.
16 June 2026. In judgment B-5862/2024, published on 1 July, the Federal Administrative CourtThe Swiss court that hears appeals against FINMA decisions. Its judgments are where FINMA's legal positions get tested in public. annulled the substantive measures in FINMAThe Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority. It licenses firms, inspects them and can shut them down — but it cannot fine anyone.'s order of 21 June 2024 against VP Bank (Schweiz). They included CHF 440,117 of profit disgorgementTaking back a profit somebody made from breaking the rules. It strips the gain; it is not a fine, so no profit means no payment.. The court held that FINMA had reasoned with hindsight. It had attributed to the bank knowledge of a Russian-linked procurement network that the bank could not have had when it opened the relationships in 2009.
July 2026. In an interview with NZZ am Sonntag, FINMAThe Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority. It licenses firms, inspects them and can shut them down — but it cannot fine anyone.'s president said FINMA closes about 40 enforcement proceedings a year. She said it may inform the public about barely 5% of them, a third of which concern money laundering. These figures are the interview's own.
29 September 2026. FINMAThe Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority. It licenses firms, inspects them and can shut them down — but it cannot fine anyone. concluded its fifth enforcement proceeding against Julius Bär in under ten years. It found serious breaches of risk management and anti-money-laundering rules:
- from September 2019 the bank made eight private-debt loans to a European group and its founder, totalling more than CHF 1 billion in 2022 and 2023, while disregarding its own limits for each debtor;
- CHF 586 million outstanding at the end of 2023 was written down in full;
- in relationships linked to two Russian politically exposed persons, the origin of assets was not adequately checked for several years, and reporting duties were breached.
FINMAThe Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority. It licenses firms, inspects them and can shut them down — but it cannot fine anyone. ordered a CHF 250 million capital add-on and confiscated about CHF 10 million of profit. It also ordered reporting on the bank's culture until 2032 and its prior approval for payments to shareholders. It has opened proceedings against three former employees. FINMA states the ruling is not yet legally binding.
What comes next#
No date yet
- The Federal Supreme CourtSwitzerland's highest court, in Lausanne. Last stop for an appeal against a FINMA decision.'s judgment on FINMAThe Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority. It licenses firms, inspects them and can shut them down — but it cannot fine anyone.'s VP Bank appeal.
- Whether the Julius Bär ruling becomes legally binding.
Open questions#
- Will the Federal Supreme CourtSwitzerland's highest court, in Lausanne. Last stop for an appeal against a FINMA decision. uphold the annulment? If it does, what must a supervisor show about what a bank knew when it opened a relationship, before the network was identified?
- Will FINMAThe Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority. It licenses firms, inspects them and can shut them down — but it cannot fine anyone. be given the power to fine? FINMA's request is the only position on the record. No legislative proposal is.
- Will Julius Bär challenge the ruling?
What this is not#
- The VP Bank judgment is not final. FINMAThe Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority. It licenses firms, inspects them and can shut them down — but it cannot fine anyone. has said it will appeal, so the standard for what a bank knew, and when, is not settled.
- The Julius Bär ruling is not yet legally binding, on FINMAThe Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority. It licenses firms, inspects them and can shut them down — but it cannot fine anyone.'s own statement.
- FINMAThe Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority. It licenses firms, inspects them and can shut them down — but it cannot fine anyone.'s call for fining powers is a request. It is not a change in the law.
Reading#
Primary
- Judgment B-5862/2024, Federal Administrative CourtThe Swiss court that hears appeals against FINMA decisions. Its judgments are where FINMA's legal positions get tested in public., 16 June 2026
- Speech by Marlene Amstad to the SFAA (German), FINMAThe Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority. It licenses firms, inspects them and can shut them down — but it cannot fine anyone., 9 March 2026
- FINMA concludes enforcement proceeding against Julius Bär, FINMAThe Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority. It licenses firms, inspects them and can shut them down — but it cannot fine anyone., 29 September 2026
Ours
Official