Today, the Federal Department of Finance (FDF) published the second "Report on the national evaluation of the risks of money laundering and terrorist financing in Switzerland" by the interdepartmental coordinating group on combating money laundering and the financing of terrorism (CGMF). The report describes the evolution in these risks since the first such report was published in 2015. It also provides an overview of the legislative provisions that have been implemented in this period with a view to improving the Swiss toolkit for combating money laundering and terrorist financing. In addition, since 2017, the FDF has published a number of sectoral reports by the CGMF in this regard.
The report concludes that the considerable risk of money laundering to which Switzerland is exposed has not changed fundamentally since 2015. Because its financial centre is so interconnected internationally, the main risk to Switzerland lies in it being misused to launder assets derived from predicate offences committed abroad. In this regard, the major international money laundering cases of recent years have partly changed Switzerland's measurement of risk. If anything, they have confirmed the conclusions of the 2015 report by illustrating the magnitude of the threat from foreign corruption, but also the complexity of the suspected money laundering incidents, the large sums involved and the vulnerability of financial intermediaries engaging in international financial transactions.
Despite the continuity that emerges from the comparison of the risks identified in more recent years and the assessment of the situation in 2015, there are three particular areas in which risk has changed since 2015: online casinos, which have been authorised in Switzerland only since 2019; terrorist financing; and crypto assets, whose rapid growth and rising popularity have brought new risks.
The regulatory and legislative toolkit for combating money laundering and terrorist financing has been improved since 2015, with the aim of eliminating the shortcomings and vulnerabilities identified. The Swiss authorities will continue to prioritise effective systems for money laundering and combating terrorist financing, and continuously review these systems in order to identify potential areas for improvement.
Second national report on risks of money laundering and terrorist financing (in German)