Featured Product

    Swiss Council Adopts Ordinances on Climate Disclosures and Banking

    The Swiss Federal Council adopted the implementing ordinance on climate disclosures for large Swiss companies, with slated entry into force as of January 01, 2024. The Federal Council also brought both the Banking Act and the Banking Ordinance into force, with effect from January 01, 2023. Another recent publication is a report on the Swiss National Bank (SNB) and the sustainability goals in Switzerland. The report shows that, in fulfilling its mandate, SNB considers various climate, environmental, and sustainability aspects, to the extent that they affect price and financial stability or entail financial risks for SNB.

    The new ordinance on climate disclosures provides for the binding implementation of the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) by large Swiss companies. Public companies, banks, and insurance companies with 500 or more employees and at least CHF 20 million in total assets or more than CHF 40 million in turnover are obliged to report publicly on climate issues. Public reporting involves disclosures not only on the financial risk that a company incurs as a result of climate-related activities, but also on the impact of the company's business activities on the climate. In addition, the company has to describe the reduction targets it has set for its direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions as well as how it plans to implement them. The draft ordinance was widely supported by stakeholders during the consultation that ran from March to July 2022. To give the concerned companies sufficient time for implementation, the Federal Council has decided to bring the ordinance into force as of January 01, 2024, with reporting beginning in 2025. The Ordinance specifies that "the obligation to publish the disclosures in a machine-readable electronic format in common international use shall be met one year at the latest after this Ordinance enters into force."

    The amendments to the Banking Act and Banking Ordinance have implementing provisions that mainly comprise definitions and more precise formulations on deposit insurance. For example, there are stipulations for banks on how to make preparations to ensure the swift payout of insured deposits in the event of insolvency. Furthermore, there are new provisions enabling cantonal banks to issue special financial instruments for resolution that are tailored to their special legal status. In addition, the financial and organizational requirements for unsupervised, important companies belonging to a systemically important banking group have been fleshed out. Finally, the amendments also concern big banks, as their rebate on certain capital requirements is replaced with an incentive system. The Federal Council has brought both the Banking Act and the Banking Ordinance into force with effect from January 01, 2023. Parliament had adopted the amendments to the Banking Act on December 17, 2021. As a result of the amendments to the Banking Act, the Banking Ordinance also needs to be amended.

     

    Related Links

     

    Keywords: Europe, Switzerland, Banking, Basel, Reporting, Banking Ordinance, G SIBs, ESG, Climate Change Risk, Disclosures, Climate Disclosures Ordinance, TCFD Recommendations, Sustainable Finance, Swiss Federal Council

    Featured Experts
    Related Articles
    News

    ISSB Sustainability Standards Expected to Become Global Baseline

    The finalization of the two sustainability disclosure standards—IFRS S1 and IFRS S2—is expected to be a significant step forward in the harmonization of sustainability disclosures worldwide.

    September 18, 2023 WebPage Regulatory News
    News

    IOSCO, BIS, and FSB to Intensify Focus on Decentralized Finance

    Decentralized finance (DeFi) is expected to increase in prominence, finding traction in use cases such as lending, trading, and investing, without the intermediation of traditional financial institutions.

    September 18, 2023 WebPage Regulatory News
    News

    BCBS Assesses NSFR and Large Exposures Rules in US

    The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) published reports that assessed the overall implementation of the net stable funding ratio (NSFR) and the large exposures rules in the U.S.

    September 14, 2023 WebPage Regulatory News
    News

    Global Agencies Focus on ESG Data, Climate Litigation and Nature Risks

    At the global level, supervisory efforts are increasingly focused on addressing climate risks via better quality data and innovative use of technologies such as generative artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain.

    September 14, 2023 WebPage Regulatory News
    News

    ISSB Standards Shine Spotlight on Comparability of ESG Disclosures

    The finalization of the IFRS sustainability disclosure standards in late June 2023 has brought to the forefront the themes of the harmonization of sustainability disclosures

    August 22, 2023 WebPage Regulatory News
    News

    EBA Issues Several Regulatory and Reporting Updates for Banks

    The European Banking Authority (EBA) recently issued several regulatory publications impacting the banking sector.

    August 10, 2023 WebPage Regulatory News
    News

    BCBS Proposes to Revise Core Principles for Banking Supervision

    The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) launched a consultation on revisions to the core principles for effective banking supervision, with the comment period ending on October 06, 2023.

    August 04, 2023 WebPage Regulatory News
    News

    US Proposes Final Basel Rules, Transition Period to Start in July 2025

    The U.S. banking agencies (FDIC, FED, and OCC) recently proposed rules implementing the final Basel III reforms, also known as the Basel III Endgame.

    August 04, 2023 WebPage Regulatory News
    News

    FSB Report Outlines Next Steps for Climate Risk Roadmap

    The Financial Stability Board (FSB) recently published the second annual progress report on the July 2021 roadmap to address climate-related financial risks.

    August 04, 2023 WebPage Regulatory News
    News

    EBA Plans on Ad-hoc ESG Data Collection and Climate Scenario Exercise

    The recognition of climate change as a systemic risk to the global economy has further intensified regulatory and supervisory focus on monitoring of the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) risks.

    July 31, 2023 WebPage Regulatory News
    RESULTS 1 - 10 OF 8931