- within Intellectual Property and Energy and Natural Resources topic(s)
On 22 October 2025, the Federal Council launched a consultation on amendments to Swiss financial market laws aimed at improving the regulatory framework for stablecoins and other crypto-assets, while ensuring financial stability, market integrity and investor protection. The proposed bill represents a significant step in Switzerland's efforts to consolidate its position as a leading hub in digital finance.
1. Background
Recent international and national developments have shown a
growing regulatory interest on stablecoins and other
crypto-assets.
In the United States, the Guiding and Establishing National
Innovation for US Stablecoins Act (GENIUS Act) was
signed into law in July 2025, establishing a comprehensive
regulatory framework for payment stablecoins. In the European
Union, the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation
(MiCAR) entered into force in June 2023 and is
fully applicable since December 2024, setting detailed requirements
for crypto-asset service providers and issuers of asset-referenced
tokens and e-money tokens. In the UK, new regulation covering the
topics addressed by MiCAR is expected in the near future.
With the proposed new regulation, Switzerland addresses the hot
topics that market participants most expect jurisdictions to
regulate in this rapidly evolving international landscape, while
maintaining its reputation for robust prudential supervision and
market integrity. The proposed bill builds on the existing Swiss
regulatory framework and forms part of Switzerland's broader
fintech review initiated in February 2022 under the Federal
Council's report "Digital Finance: Areas of Action
2022+".
2. Stablecoins and Trading Crypto-Assets
The draft bill distinguishes Swiss stablecoins from other crypto
assets that are held for trading purposes. Swiss Stablecoins in the
sense of the proposed legislation must aim to maintain a stable
value, reference the value of a currency issued by a State and
confer to their holder a redemption claim against the issuer
(Swiss Stablecoins).
Crypto assets other than (i) Swiss Stablecoins, (ii) crypto-assets
issued by a central bank or a State and (iii) utility tokens are
viewed as crypto assets held for trading purposes, as long as they
are not qualified as bank deposits or financial instruments
(Trading Crypto-Assets). This includes, for
instance, stablecoins issued by a non-Swiss issuer or
cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin.
3. Two New Categories of Financial Institutions
The proposed bill introduces two new categories of supervised financial institutions:
- Payment instrument institutions: This new license category is intended to replace the existing fintech license. The most relevant change compared to the existing fintech license is the removal of the CHF 100 million cap on the acceptance of client deposits. In addition to accepting client deposits (provided that they are held in the form of deposits with a Swiss bank or with another payment instrument institution or in the form of high-quality liquid assets with short term maturity), payment instrument institutions will be allowed to issue and to custody Swiss Stablecoins and to offer payment services.
- Crypto-institutions: This new license category is similar to the existing securities firm license. Crypto-institutions may, in particular: (i) act as wallet service providers for Swiss Stablecoins and Trading Crypto-Assets and offer staking services, (ii) trade in Trading Crypto-Assets for the account of clients (broker) or (iii) act as market maker for individual Trading Crypto-Assets.
4. Other Regulatory Changes
The proposed bill introduces several new regulatory requirements to adapt the existing regulatory framework to the specific characteristics of Swiss Stablecoins and Trading Crypto-Assets, including:
- Financial Services Act: A new title dedicated to crypto-assets applies the existing rules on (i) provision of financial services such as rules of conduct (e.g., information duties, appropriateness or suitability assessments or best execution) and organizational measures (e.g., conflicts of interest or compensation from third parties), (ii) offering of financial instruments (e.g., duty to publish a prospectus/whitepaper) and (iii) advertisement to Swiss Stablecoins and/or Trading Crypto-Assets.
- Anti-Money Laundering Act: Payment instrument institutions that issue Swiss Stablecoins will notably be required (i) to ensure that the risk associated with the use of the Swiss Stablecoins on the secondary market is assessed before issuance and is appropriately identified, limited and monitored within their risk management (e.g., by maintaining a list of wallets from/to which transactions are excluded or by ensuring that all holders of Swiss Stablecoins are identified by equivalently supervised financial intermediaries) and (ii) to have the capability to block transactions and to freeze and to claw back individual Swiss Stablecoins on the secondary market.
5. Next Steps
The consultation process will run until 6 February 2026.
Following the consultation period, the Federal Council is expected
to draft a consultation report assessing the feedback received from
the relevant stakeholders and submit its final dispatch and draft
bill to Parliament.
Schellenberg Wittmer will continue to closely monitor these
significant legal developments and assist its clients in
anticipating the implications of these expected regulatory
changes.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
