Updated October 2026. This article was first published in July 2025. We have revised it to reflect FINMA Guidance 06/2024 and the coming reform of the Financial Institutions Act.
Can you issue a stablecoin from Switzerland with only an SRO affiliation, without a banking or FinTech licence? Yes, but the route is much narrower than many issuers think.
The legal basis: the bank guarantee exception
Under Article 5 paragraph 3 letter f of the Banking Ordinance, funds are not treated as public deposits if a bank guarantees their repayment. An issuer that relies on this exception does not need a banking licence. It still acts as a financial intermediary and must be affiliated to a recognised self-regulatory organisation (SRO) for anti-money laundering purposes.
What FINMA requires since July 2024
In its Guidance 06/2024 on stablecoins, FINMA set minimum requirements for this guarantee:
- Each holder has their own claim against the Swiss guarantor bank and is informed of it.
- The guarantee covers all client funds, including any interest.
- The funds never exceed the amount of the guarantee.
- The guarantee can be called simply and quickly.
- The claim falls due if the issuer becomes insolvent.
Holders do not benefit from Swiss deposit protection. The guarantee is their only protection.
The anti-money laundering condition
This is where most projects stop. FINMA expects the identity of every person holding the stablecoin to be verified, by the issuer or by a supervised intermediary, with contractual and technical limits on transfers. A coin that circulates freely on public blockchains does not fit these rules.
When the route makes sense
- Closed systems where every holder is a known client.
- Settlement between identified business counterparties.
- Pilot projects before a full licence.
It does not suit a stablecoin meant to trade freely on exchanges and decentralised platforms. And a bank willing to give the guarantee is not easy to find.
What changes next
Switzerland plans a new licence for payment instrument institutions, which would have the exclusive right to issue Swiss stablecoins, with reserves protected in bankruptcy and redemption at par. The draft also offers an alternative to identifying every holder. We explain the reform in Switzerland’s Fintech Licence Failed. Here Is What Replaces It and the current rules in Issuing a Stablecoin in Switzerland.
Planning a stablecoin from Switzerland? Write to insight@fintechlex.com.
