By Rene Philippe Raymond Dubout · · Updated Dear reader,
Switzerland has one of the most complete regulatory systems in the world, and one of the least understood. Founders ask us for a bank when a securities firm would do. Fintechs apply for a licence when an SRO membership would be enough. Investors buy a company without checking what comes with it.
So we have started a series of plain-English guides on doing financial business in Switzerland. Here are the first ones.
New this week
Crypto Custody and Staking in Switzerland: When an SRO Is Enough, and When You Need a FINMA Licence
Custody, staking and the line between an SRO and a FINMA licence. And why staking for clients does not automatically make you a bank.
EMI for Sale in Europe: What You Are Really Buying, What It Costs, and What Can Go Wrong
Buying a licensed EMI looks faster than applying. What you really get, what it costs, and the traps nobody mentions.
Start here
How Swiss Financial Regulation Works: FINMA, Supervisory Organisations and SROs
Who supervises what. The map you need before choosing a licence.
SRO or Licence: Which Do You Need?
An SRO membership and a FINMA licence are not the same thing, and the difference costs money.
Fit and Proper: What FINMA Looks At Before It Licenses You
The people behind the company matter as much as the business plan.
The Swiss licences
The Swiss Banking Licence: What It Really Takes, and When You Do Not Need One
Many projects that ask for a bank do not need one.
The Swiss Securities Firm Licence: Who Needs It and What It Takes
The five types, the thresholds, and why not every trader needs a licence.
The Swiss Portfolio Manager Licence: What It Takes and What It Really Costs
The licence most independent managers need, and what it costs to keep.
Buy and Upgrade, or Start Fresh? The Fastest Route to a Swiss Fund Manager Licence
Buying a portfolio manager to upgrade it can save time, or backfire.
The L-QIF: Switzerland’s Fund Without FINMA Approval
Easy to launch. The hard part is who may invest in it.
Issuing a Stablecoin in Switzerland: The Rules Today, and the Licence Coming Next
What FINMA expects today, and the new licence now being prepared.
Buying rather than applying
Buying a Swiss Regulated Company: What to Check Before You Sign
A licence is not sold in a box. It comes inside a company, with its files, clients and history.
Buying a Bank or an EMI: How the Regulator’s Approval Really Works
Whatever the country, the regulator must approve the new owner. What it looks at.
On the market
Regulated companies change hands quietly. These are currently with us. Details are shared with qualified buyers after a first call and a confidentiality agreement.
Singapore Major Payment Institution
100% of a Singapore company holding a MAS Major Payment Institution licence for cross-border money transfer, with a local bank relationship, a compliance officer and a local director in place. MPIs rarely come to market.
Two Swiss companies affiliated to a self-regulatory organisation, both with a crypto (VASP) profile:
Company A: a Swiss AG founded in the 1980s, clean AML audit for 2025, currently dormant. Company B: a Swiss AG founded in 2018, AML audits compliant since 2021, with a broad payments and crypto purpose.
FintechLex now has an app
For years clients have asked me the same two questions: what licence do I actually need, and do you have anything for sale? The answers now live on your phone, in two tabs.
Insight: our analysis of licences, jurisdictions and regulation. Swiss SROs, FINMA, EMIs, banks, MiCA. What it really takes, what it really costs, and what nobody tells you. Marketplace: the regulated companies we currently have for sale. Banks, EMIs, payment institutions, SRO-affiliated companies. New listings appear as soon as we publish them.
No App Store, no account, no download. On iPhone, open fintechlex.com/app in Safari, tap Share, then Add to Home Screen. On Android, open it in Chrome and tap Install app.
Write to us
If one of these subjects is on your desk, write to insight@fintechlex.com. A first call costs nothing and often saves a wrong licence.
Rene-Philippe
FintechLex SA · Geneva | Hong Kong | London · fintechlex.com
This newsletter is for general information only and does not constitute legal advice or an offer to sell any shares or securities.
