Finance
Swiss Stop Short of Giving Regulator Power to Fine Banks
- Finance Minister had said she was in favor of the measure
- Swiss traditionally have consensual approach to bank oversight
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The Swiss government stopped short of offering the country’s banking watchdog the power to fine lenders, despite widespread support for the measure — including from the finance minister.
After the near-collapse of Credit Suisse over a year ago and its takeover by UBS Group AG, Switzerland is grappling with how to handle an outsized financial sector dominated by a behemoth bank that’s more than twice the size of its economy. Empowering Finma to impose levies had been backed by Finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter earlier this year, as well as by a government-appointed expert panel and by the regulator itself.