Author's Note
The product, a know-how collection entitled “ FinSA Q&A: Special Topics ” consists of 58 questions and answers (" Q&As ") as well as further guidance developed by the UBS team of regulatory experts and provides you with the basis for defining key areas where the new regulations may impact existing processes and documentation. Your purchase gives you access to a know-how collection prepared by UBS and may serve as a basis for you to establish your best practices as a financial service provider. Special topics in scope of new regulations When applying the FinSA in its interplay with the Swiss Financial Institutions Act (“ FinIA ”) and the revised Swiss Collective Investment Schemes Act (“ revCISA ”), financial service providers also have to understand how the new requirements may impact external asset managers, prudential supervision, client-facing contracts and templates, what transitional periods apply and what penal provisions and FINMA enforcement measures could be relevant...
Read moreThe product, a know-how collection entitled “FinSA Q&A: Special Topics” consists of 58 questions and answers ("Q&As") as well as further guidance developed by the UBS team of regulatory experts and provides you with the basis for defining key areas where the new regulations may impact existing processes and documentation.
Your purchase gives you access to a know-how collection prepared by UBS and may serve as a basis for you to establish your best practices as a financial service provider.
Special topics in scope of new regulations
When applying the FinSA in its interplay with the Swiss Financial Institutions Act (“FinIA”) and the revised Swiss Collective Investment Schemes Act (“revCISA”), financial service providers also have to understand how the new requirements may impact external asset managers, prudential supervision, client-facing contracts and templates, what transitional periods apply and what penal provisions and FINMA enforcement measures could be relevant in this context. The rules in their interplay can be complex and the practice is still developing. A good understanding of such impact may hence be helpful in order to avoid regulatory and operational risks in this context.
These Q&As are essential practical knowledge for those that provide financial services in Switzerland or to clients in Switzerland.
For a full overview of the questions covered by this product, see Questions answered by UBS' FinSA Q&A under the Special Topics section.
What you get
After you make your purchase, PartnerVine makes the Q&A available to you for download as a searchable pdf. Below are two Q&As from this product so you can see a sample of what you will get:
Samples of the Q&A
Are FIMs and depositary banks subject to information duties?
If the depositary bank classifies the EAM as institutional client the conduct rules which include the general information duties (art. 8 and 9 FinSA) do not apply (art. 20(1) FinSA). However, information duties stipulated in other articles of the FinSA may apply towards the EAM (e.g., duty to inform about opt-in option). Furthermore, the depositary bank remains obliged to fulfil information duties towards EFCs and the end-clients, insofar as they do not qualify as institutional clients. If the EFCs and/or end-clients are professional clients, they may waive their right to receive information as stipulated in art. 8 and 9 FinSA. The waiver does not apply to information duties set forth in other articles of the regulation. In particular, end-clients which only receive execution only services by the depositary bank, must be notified that no suitability and appropriateness assessment is provided by the depositary bank and that this warning (if not repeated at each transaction) is only provided once.
FIMs are subject to information duties towards their end-clients within the limitations described above.
What are the criteria for a foreign entity to be considered as subject to prudential supervision abroad?
It can be assumed that a legal entity is prudentially supervised abroad if it undertakes activities in the financial sector and therefore is licensed by a state authority. This includes that it has to comply with the licensing requirements on an ongoing basis as well as with other specific legal requirements which are supposed to be similar to the above mentioned Swiss requirements (e.g. rules of business conduct, increased requirements on liquidity, for accounting, business operations and financial guarantees). Finally, the entity's compliance with such requirements must be supervised by a responsible state authority abroad.
Who needs it
The FinSA Q&A: Special Topics is for financial service providers providing their services in Switzerland or to clients in Switzerland. If you are a financial service provider, this product helps you understand the impact of the new financial market regulations on external asset managers, with regard to prudential supervision, penal and transitional provisions and FINMA enforcement measures as well as their impact on client-facing contracts and templates.
About UBS
UBS Business Solutions AG ("UBS") is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the UBS Group AG. For more information on UBS, go to www.ubs.com.
Key features
Key features of this product include:
- Structured & easy-to-read. Structured in a reader-friendly, easy-to-access Q&A format that is aligned with the relevant regulations.
- Easy-to-understand. The language is practical and business friendly. The explanations in the text are accompanied by tables and graphics which make it easier to understand and communicate the regulations.
- Interconnected. The Q&As include references to related content in other modules of UBS' FinSA Q&A and third party content to help readers understand the issues.
- Categorization. All of the Q&As are categorized into specific topic groups which you can adapt to your individual needs.
- Upskilling your employees. Underlined terms are explained in the Glossary, which is a complementary product that comprises over 160 terms and definitions. Together with the Glossary, the Q&As provide knowledge management support not just for employees that know an issue well, but employees that need to learn about an issue, increasing expertise across your firm.
- Cost & time savings. You receive extraordinary value when you purchase this product. As your usage increases, your savings increase dramatically (see the Relative Advantage Calculator on the left hand side and the section below on the Relative Advantage Calculator, which will help you understand the value of this product).
Relative Advantage
The FinSA Q&A: Special Topics gets rid of the need to research the impact of the new regulatory requirements on the abovementioned special topics. The Relative Advantage Calculator on this page shows a conservative use case, and the amount you would save compared to doing the tasks without the benefit of our product. For the calculator, we've taken an hour as the estimate for a lawyer charging CHF 450 per hour to research the answer to one of our Q&As and 20 hours for the establishment of a contract due diligence guidance. Our assumptions are conservative ones based on our experience. If you'd like to change our assumptions, you can do so in the calculator and run the number again. The value delivered by our product is meaningful in the vast majority of circumstances, and exceptional as your usage increases.
Circumstances of Use
This product is intended for Swiss financial service providers and financial institutions and provides general information on the FinSA and related laws as of the date of finalization. Our objective is to provide the UBS' perspective of the law in order to help support a better understanding of the new regulatory framework in Switzerland. This product can be used either for implementing the new regulatory framework or as the basis of your own internal knowledge management. This product is not for use outside of Switzerland.
Important Terms
- This product is provided to you only for use in Switzerland.
- You are required to pay for this product by invoice after you have received it. As digital products are so easily replicable, there is no right of rescission for this product and your obligation to pay is unconditional.
- This product is provided to you on a non-reliance basis. There is no guarantee that this product will address your particular facts and circumstances, and you will have no recourse to UBS or PartnerVine if you do not think it does.
- Use of this product does not create an attorney-client relationship with UBS Business Solutions AG or PartnerVine, nor should the product be considered a substitute for qualified legal advice. If you need advice tailored to your facts and circumstances, please consult qualified counsel.
- Your contract for this product is with UBS Business Solutions AG. You will not have recourse to PartnerVine in respect of your use and enjoyment of this product.
Support
This product is a downloadable pdf. There is no additional support for this product.