After publishing a very comprehensive report on distributed ledger technology (DLT) and blockchain in last December, the Federal Council initiated during its meeting on 22 March 2019 the next step by a public consultation on the adaptation of specific federal law provisions to developments in DLT and blockchain. This further underlines the emphasis of the Federal Council on creating the best possible framework to allow Switzerland to establish itself as a leading, innovative and sustainable location for fintech and DLT companies.
Die Digitalisierung ist eine die wichtigsten Treiber von Innovation und von entscheidender Bedeutung für die Wettbewerbsfähigkeit der Schweizer Volkswirtschaft. Zu den vielversprechendsten Entwicklungen gehört die Distributed Ledger Technologie (DLT).
Der Bundesrat hat im März 2019 die Vernehmlassung zur Anpassung des Bundesrechts an die Entwicklungen der DLT eingeleitet und einen vorläufigen legislativen Vorschlag für ein neues Bundesgesetz zur Änderung von Bundesgesetzen im Lichte der Entwicklungen zur DLT ("Vernehmlassungsentwurf") sowie einen erläuternden Bericht vorgelegt.
On 8 March 2019 the consultation on the partial revision of the banking act was initiated by the Federal Council. The amendments have an impact on bank restructurings, deposit insurance and intermediated securities. The consultation period will close on 14 June 2019.
Insolvency and restructuring measures
On March 8, 2019, the Swiss Federal Council instructed the Federal Department of Finance to initiate the consultation process on proposed amendments to the Banking Act.
The proposed amendments aim at increasing the effectiveness, and legal basis, of certain bank resolution measures and related topics.
Interested parties can comment on the draft proposal until June 14, 2019.
Restructuring procedure for banks
The Swiss Debt Enforcement and Bankruptcy Act (DEBA) allows the initiation of debt enforcement proceedings before a court becomes involved. A creditor can request the competent debt enforcement office (normally at the domicile of the debtor) to issue a payment order to the debtor. The office serves that payment order without verifying the existence and enforceability of the purported claim; however, the debtor may declare its objection, within 10 days, to the debt enforcement office.
The Swiss Federal Council recently released a comprehensive report on the embedding of the Blockchain technology into the Swiss legal framework: This report shall guide the way to bringing the legal certainty for the Swiss Blockchain ecosystem to the next level.
Article 149a of the Swiss Law on Debt Collection and Bankruptcy (SchKG) provides that claims based on a loss certificate become time-barred within 20 years after the date of its issuance. According to the transitional provisions, this time limit applies equally to loss certificates issued prior to the enactment of article 149a which came into force on 1 January 1997.1 Prior to that change in the law, claims based on loss certificates were not subject to prescription.
The worst economic disaster since the great depression of 1929 took American and European banks by storm in 2008. The US, European countries and Russia, among others, had to step in to save some of their banks from bankruptcy. Even certain German banks, symbols of the country's strength and prosperity, were on the verge of collapsing. Against this backdrop, the purpose of this briefing is to provide a highlevel summary of the mechanisms in place to cope with the bankruptcy of a foreign bank in Switzerland.