No sooner have banks installed the new payments systems comes the next change: in coming months, Swiss lenders need to get ready for the end of Libor. Saron will be the reference rate for countless financial products from 2021.
Officials including Swiss regulator Finma (pictured below) have repeatedly warned banks to get moving on the changeover. It is expected to cost big banks roughly $400 million (more than $85 billion in credit is affected by the move). If banks botch it, legal risks loom.
8. Swiss Crypto Banking's Year
The groundwork was laid back in 2018 when bitcoin was booming, and last August two Swiss lenders clinched banking licenses from regulator Finma. Seba and Sygnum are ready to expand and win clients – which costs money. Seba has already signalled its attempt to top up its initial $100 million funding early this year.
In infrastructure, the Swiss stock exchange operator's digital project, SDX, is expected to be ready to go live at the end of this year – at the earliest. Further delays wouldn't be a huge surprise.
(Image: SGE)
9. SIX's European Splash?
By denying Switzerland equivalency to its trading venues, the European Union effectively cut off the alpine nation's access to foreign business. Swiss officials responded by ordering that Swiss company securities only be traded on SIX, the Zurich-based stock exchange. The reprisal has given Swiss trading a quick fillip – but the blockade is damaging in the long run.
Meanwhile, SIX is planning a bridgehead to Spain: in November, the exchange operator unveiled pricey plans to buy Madrid rival BME (pictured below) for $3 billion. Paneuropean exchange Euronext is also sniffing around BME – meaning the takeover offer may spark a bidding war.
10. Four-Leaf Clover of Rules
