FinfraG — Swiss Financial Market Infrastructure Act

The Financial Market Infrastructure Act (FinfraG) entered into force on 1 January 2016 and establishes the modern regulatory framework for financial market infrastructures in Switzerland. It implements the decisions of the G20 Pittsburgh Summit (2009) on OTC derivatives market reform and brings Switzerland to a level comparable with EMIR and the US Dodd-Frank Act.

• Exchanges and trading venues: Licensing requirement and operational requirements
• Central counterparties (CCPs): Recognition, equity capital, risk management
• Trade repositories: Obligation to report derivative transactions
• Central securities depositories (CSDs): Regulation of securities custody
• OTC derivatives: Clearing obligation, reporting obligation, margin requirements
• Market conduct: Prohibitions on insider trading and market manipulation

The 2007/08 financial crisis revealed the systemic risks of the over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives market. At the G20 Pittsburgh Summit in 2009, leading economies committed to centrally clearing standardized OTC derivatives, reporting them to trade repositories, and — where possible — trading them on organized venues.

Switzerland responded with FinfraG, adopted by Parliament on 19 June 2015 and entered into force on 1 January 2016. It replaced the previous stock exchange rules (BEHG) and substantially expanded the regulatory framework to include CCPs, CSDs, and derivatives markets. EU equivalence recognition for Swiss trading venues expired at end of 2019 and was not renewed, causing significant market dislocations.

FinfraG applies to:

• Exchanges and multilateral/organized trading systems
• Central counterparties (CCPs)
• Central securities depositories (CSDs)
• Trade repositories
• Payment systems (systemically important)
• Financial market participants (banks, securities dealers) for OTC derivatives
• Issuers (transparency and disclosure obligations)

• Authorization/recognition: Financial market infrastructures require FINMA authorization or recognition
• Clearing obligation: Standardized OTC derivatives must be cleared through licensed CCPs
• Reporting obligation: All derivative transactions must be reported to a recognized trade repository
• Margin requirements: Variation margin and initial margin for non-centrally cleared derivatives
• Market conduct: Prohibitions on insider trading and market manipulation, reporting obligation upon suspicion
• Disclosure: Transparency obligations for significant participations in listed companies
• Mandatory bid: Mandatory offer upon exceeding 33⅓% voting rights threshold

"FinMIA — Financial Market Infrastructure Act" was classified under theme "Jurisdiktion". Correct is "Finanzmarkt". National laws and authorities are classified by subject matter, not as Jurisdiction. Country profiles are classified as Jurisdiction.

4 corrections:
- Clearing obligation entered into force on 1 September 2018, not 3 January 2018
- EU equivalence expired on 30 June 2019, not 'end of 2019'
- last_amended is outdated: FinfraG was last amended on 1 February 2024
- official_url points to FinfraV (ordinance) instead of FinfraG (act)
3 updates:
- Missing key_date: FinfraG amendment Art. 152a effective 1 February 2024
- Missing development: FinfraG revision 2024 (consultation)
- Missing development: Lifting of stock exchange protective measure as of 1 May 2025