How can Swiss investors make the most of opportunities in France? In this PwC Deal Talk we look at opportunities for Swiss companies in France and the pitfalls to look out for to make sure your deal is a success.
The Shareholder Rights Directive II (SRD II) strengths the shareholder rights and sets out new requirements for intermediaries, institutional investors, asset manager, and proxy advisors, as well as redefines the remuneration policy for directors.
This three-part study comprises the years from 2007 to 2017 and investigates board and executive compensation at the largest 100 listed Swiss companies. Moreover, for more recent years, one part of our study also provides a comparison with the largest 130 listed German companies.
The National Council’s Economic Affairs and Taxation Committee (EATC) has finished its debate about Tax Proposal 17. It has agreed, albeit with a slim majority, to submit the package for further debated to the National Council. Such discussion is scheduled on 12 September 2018.
In this article, we will explain how AI is set to change project management practice, what obstacles need to be overcome, and how project managers can prepare themselves to stay relevant in a fully integrated, automated and predictive project management world.
On September 3rd 2018, FINMA published a new fact sheet on dealing with virtual currencies, such as "Bitcoin". The fact sheet provides information on licensing requirements under financial market law and risks associated with the blockchain technology. This technology makes it possible to manage monetary units of virtual currencies in a computer network. This network enables decentralized currency trading on the Internet, in which neither the state nor other banks are intermediaries.
PwC Legal Switzerland has joined the Accord Project to contribute towards the development of a global, open source implementation for smart legal contracts. The Accord Project counts over 50 global law firms, standards bodies and trade associations among its members and collaborators.
On 28 August 2018, the Ministry for General Government Affairs and Finance of Liechtenstein published the consultation report on the new Blockchain Act. The new law aims to strengthen the legal certainty for users and service providers in order to further promote the positive development of the "token economy" in Liechtenstein and, at the same time, to protect the reputation of the country.
In mid-June 2018, the Parliament decided to create a new licence category in the Banking Act to promote innovation in the financial markets sector. On August 28th 2018, the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority FINMA opened a consultation of the revised AMLO-FINMA until the 26th October 2018.
The Federal Office for National Economic Supply (FONES) has today published the ICT minimum standard for the protection against cyber risks.
In this blog post we look at initial coin offerings: what they are, how they work, and the things to bear in mind if you’re intending to launch an ICO that raises funds and does your reputation good.
PwC Legal Switzerland announced plans to join the Global Legal Blockchain Consortium. PwC Legal Switzerland joins more than 80 other law firms, legal technology vendors, and service providers participating in the GLBC.
US estate and donation tax could have a significant impact on non-US persons if they hold assets which are located in the US.
Interpretation der FPRE-Metaanalyse Immobilien 3Q/18
This issue discusses disclosures required in interim financial statements on the initial adoption of IFRS 9 and 15, IAS 29 becoming applicable in Argentina, and more.
Bi-monthly newsletter prepared by members of PwC’s pan-European EU Direct Tax Group (EUDTG) network.
Robotic process automation (RPA) technologies are a cost-effective and non-invasive way of automating repetitive business processes. Apart from achieving process automation, RPA also digitises manual processes in the organisation and captures valuable process data.
On 19 July 2018, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) announced that the FATCA Registration System will be upgraded in the coming weeks to include capabilities for the completion of the certification of pre-existing accounts and the periodic certification. Both certifications will be due by December 15, 2018 according to a new FAQ posted by the IRS this week.
The subject of cryptocurrencies is new and wild, and its effects on the economy and society are largely unknown. It is nevertheless important to get to grips with the basics in a business context. We show you how. And why.
New chatbot launched in successful trials with customers.
The new EU Benchmarks Regulation (BMR) was published in June 2016 and introduces new compliance requirements for benchmark administrators, contributors, a12345nd users, with regard to interest rate, foreign exchange, security, commodity, and other benchmarks used in financial transactions.
The EU has enacted a new set of regulations applicable to securitisations and a more specific framework for simple, transparent, and standardised securitisations (“Regulation”).
ESMA published and updated in the last couple of days additional Level 3 Q&A papers. Due to the specification and clarification purposes of the Level 3 papers, this should help you during and after the implementation phase and could clarify open questions.
As part of our ongoing involvement engagement with the leading FinTech space F10 Incubator & Accelerator, we are delighted to showcase five promising start-ups.
From 13 February 2018 to 28 March 2018 the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority FINMA conducted a public hearing on the draft of the partially revised FINMA Circular 2016/7 "Video and online identification". FINMA published the partially revised circular on 17 July 2018. The aim of the partial revision is to adapt the Circular to the technological innovations and to the experience gained in applying the Circular since it entered into force in March 2016.
How can Swiss companies make the most of opportunities in the US? This is what we explore in this article, where we look at the opportunities for Swiss companies in the United States, and the pitfalls to look out for to make sure your deal is a success
The series of annual reports, developed and issued by the collaboration of the global networks of UBS and PwC, outlines billionaires characteristics and how they empower the global economy. PwC advise a large number of the world’s wealthy and have unique insights into their changing fortunes and needs.
Insurance companies often fail to recognise the importance of addressing the reinsurance aspects of IFRS 17. In this article we look at why it’s important to tackle this early on.
This issue discusses Transition Resource Group debates IFRS 17 implementation issues, Disclosures required in interim financial statements, IFRS 9, and more.
PwC’s Sports Business Advisory practice sat down with Shayne Bannan, Mitchelton-SCOTT’s General Manager, to discuss the professional cycling team’s impressive success, digital footprint and role in bringing China and the world of cycling closer together.
Earlier this week the OECD released a non-consensus discussion draft (the Draft) on the transfer pricing aspects of loans, cash pooling, guarantees, hedging transactions and captive insurance structures. This blog provides our initial reactions to the first three of these areas.
Streamlined financial reporting is the right idea at the right time. With concerns of non-compliance prompting companies to include more and more information, readers are finding it harder and harder to find what they need and get a clear picture of companies’ performance.
On 21 June 2018, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) issued its judgment in Fidelity Funds (C-480/16). The underlying question of the case was whether it is in accordance with the free movement of capital that non-resident investment funds are subject to withholding tax on dividends received from their Danish portfolio investments while resident investment funds are exempted from withholding tax on such dividend payments.
On 8 June 2018 the Government of the Principality of Liechtenstein issued a press release stating that Liechtenstein has signed a Double Taxation Agreement (DTA) with Jersey. The DTA between Liechtenstein and Jersey shall in particular grant treaty access to asset structures, investment funds, pension funds and charitable organisations.
How can Swiss companies make the most of opportunities in Canada? This is what we explore in this article, where we look at the opportunities for Swiss companies in Canada, and the pitfalls to look out for to make sure your deal is a success.
Financial Reporting Webcast 2018
Digitalisation meets public administration: this white paper explains the massive disruptive impact of the ‘zero cost of control’ phenomenon on business and society. It forms the basis of our subsequent white paper ‘What happens when the taxman gets superpowers?
The European Commission has published a draft delegated regulation proposing to amend the Delegated Regulation (EU) No 231/2013 to the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) as regards safe-keeping duties of depositaries for Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs). The newly proposed obligations would address depositaries and custodians further clarifying on their duties and ensuring harmonised protection of their clients' assets at EU level.
Digitalisation meets tax authority: in a new white paper we explain why the corporate world should be preparing now for the imminent digitalisation of tax authorities. Companies will have to make extra efforts to get their tax capabilities quickly on the same data-driven level at which the authorities will be operating soon.
On 12 June 2018, the National Council resolved the last differences on the Financial Services Act (FinSA) and the Financial Institutions Act (FinIA). Thus, the FinSA and the FinIA are ready for the final votes, which will take place on Friday, 15 June 2018.
Am 31. Mai 2018 beschloss der gemeinsame EWR-Ausschuss die vorbehaltslose Implementation der Solvency II Level 2 und der EMIR Level 2 delegierten Rechtsakte. Folglich wurden per 01. Juni 2018 die EMIR und Solvency II Level 2 Rechtsakte in Liechtenstein, Norwegen und Island anwendbar.
On 31 May 2018 the EEA Joint Committee reached a decision without reservation regarding the implementation of Solvency II Level 2 and EMIR Level 2 frameworks. Thus, as of 1 June 2018, the EMIR and Solvency II Level 2 delegated acts are applicable to Liechtenstein, Norway and Island.
Mansplaining is a term used for a man who shows empathy towards Diversity & Inclusion topics, but then gives a rational explanation for why any action is out of their control. Discover some examples of how you can overcome "Mansplaining".
On 7 June 2018, the Council of States discussed details about the Tax Proposal 17 measures, confirming the proposed changes of the WAK-S. Recently, the WAK-S had unanimously agreed on an overall concept which differs in several points from the dispatch on the draft law bill published by the Federal Council on 21 March 2018.
On 29 May 2018, the National Council passed its resolution on the Financial Services Act (FinSA) and the Financial Institutions Act (FinIA). Shortly thereafter, on 4 June 2018, the Council of States discussed about FinSA and FinIA and resolved the following differences:
On 31 May 2018, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) issued its judgment in Hornbach-Baumarkt (C-382/16). The case refers to German transfer pricing rules applying to transactions with foreign related parties and which do not provide the possibility for taxpayers to prove the existence of commercial reasons in case they conclude transactions not at arm's length terms.
This issue discusses Transition Resource Group debates IFRS 17 implementation issues, Disclosures required in interim financial statements, IFRS 9, and more.
On 5 June 2018, the Official Journal of the European Union published the Directive regarding mandatory exchange of information in relation to reportable cross border arrangements (“DAC6”).
PwC’s 2018 State of the Internal Audit Profession study gathered insights from over 1,200 stakeholders globally who lead Internal Audit functions.
On Tuesday 29 May 2018, the National Council discussed again about the Financial Services Act (FinSA) and the Financial Institutions Act (FinIA). After the resolution of the National Council a few differences remain to the text approved by the Council of State.
Shareholders are beginning to ask questions at AGMs about a company’s stance on gender pay. With the gender pay gap being under greater scrutiny than ever before, this begs the question: “What are governments doing about it?”
While 2017 was a good year for pension funds, trends show that pension outcomes are falling: Investing the same amount of money today in a pension plan is likely to lead to a lower outcome at retirement than in the past. At the same time, employer risk is increasing as interest rates remain low. Some employers see 1e pension plans as part of the solution. What is the latest on this?
On 25 May, the Council of the European Union adopted the DAC6 directive relating to reporting of so-called aggressive tax planning schemes by intermediaries and taxpayers.
The state of progress in terms of digitalisation varies from organisation to organisation depending on its size, financial resources and expertise.
Through our State of Internal Audit Survey, we gathered insights, which lead us to believe that there is great potential in the advancement of IA functions in Switzerland.
Through our State of Internal Audit Survey, we gathered insights, which lead us to believe that there is great potential in the advancement of IA functions in Switzerland.
With the revision of the Criminal Law on Corruption, the criminal responsibility of companies and their management is gaining in importance.
Digital transformation is the most critical challenge for industrial companies worldwide. PwC’s new study “How to Be a Digital Operations Champion – Global Industry 4.0 Study 2018” shows that as far as Swiss companies are concerned, they have not quite exploited their full potential yet.
The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority FINMA has recently announced that it will introduce the clearing obligation, meaning to clear certain derivatives over central counterparties, under the Swiss Financial Market Infrastructure Act (FMIA) that are traded by counterparties having the status of either an FC+, meaning large Financial Counterparty, or an NFC+, meaning a large Non-Financial Counterparty.
This issue discusses presentation of interest revenue for certain financial instruments, the Conceptual Framework, IFRS 15, and more.
This is what you can expect in the Swiss real estate industry in Q2/2018: a strong GDP growth of 2.2%, residential rents fall, turning point for interest rates, investment in construction slows.
How do you restructure for growth by aligning your operating and tax models?
What does new, transparent data tell us about the current state of gender inequality in Swiss company leadership?
A study of volumes, players and success factors
An initial coin offering (ICO) or a token sale is when a company sells a predefined number of digital tokens to the public in a limited period of time. The ICO market has grown very rapidly in recent months and has been a new avenue for blockchain-based start-ups and projects to get the funding needed to launch their projects.
This primer seeks to give an overview of the key obligations under Swiss regulatory laws related to cryptocurrencies and asset management related to cryptocurrencies.
For many financial services companies, financial technology (short “FinTech”) and technological innovation in general offer tremendous opportunities in terms of access to finance, operational efficiency, cost savings and competition. On March 8th 2018 the European Commission presented an action plan with a total of 23 measures to make better use of the opportunities offered by technological innovations in the financial services sector. The EU wants to become a global hub for FinTech in the future.
Modern society is largely considered as "gender-equal". But women are still facing discrimination in areas such as education, salaries and political representation. This report aims to detail and quantify some remaining inequalities at the level of decision-making positions in Switzerland.
Banking and Asset Management: The most important regulatory developments with comments to important aspects/changes and status.
In its media release of 16 February 2018 the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority FINMA published its long-awaited guidance on Initial Coin Offerings (ICO) which defines the minimum information required and principles for requests for negative clearance.
Demands on Switzerland, timeframe, objectives, basic concept and measures of Tax Proposal 17.
What a difference a year makes. In last year’s report, we asked the question "Are billionaires feeling the pressure?” as billionaire wealth dropped.
Our analysis of financial information from Swiss hospitals reveals that too many acute hospitals are not yet profitable enough.
Now in its 12th edition, Paying Taxes is a unique report from PwC and the World Bank Group which uses a medium-sized domestic case study company to measure and assess the ease of paying taxes across 190 economies. This year we explore how the digital revolution is transforming almost every aspect of paying taxes.
Under the 4th anti-money laundering directive of the European Union, all European countries are obliged to introduce legislation that will create a register of the ultimate beneficial owners (UBOs) of structures. Who qualifies as a UBO? What information will be collected? Who will have access to the data?
Do you have an opinion on executive pay? Everyone else does! The debate is emotionally charged, but how well informed is it? Every year, PwC endeavours to fuel a better-founded conversation by presenting one of the most detailed studies of board and executive remuneration in Switzerland. Next out is the eleventh edition of Executive Compensation & Corporate Governance Insights, covering the largest listed Swiss companies from 2007 to 2016.
The State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) issued a new directive on the permissibility of intragroup staff leasing. It clarified that intragroup staff leasing also generally requires the relevant licences – contrary to a previous directive dating back to 2003. To fully understand its impact, it is necessary to be familiar with the legal concept of staff leasing. Below, we will therefore provide you with more information on staff leasing in general before focusing on intragroup staff leasing, and on crossborder staff leasing in particular. To conclude, we will give our views on the consequences of the new SECO directive.
What links spies, hackers, cookies and a grey Aston Martin DBS? The answer can be found in the indictment against four suspects that the U.S. Department of Justice published last week. The four individuals are accused of breaching into the networks of a large telecommunication company in 2014 and of stealing large amounts of client data. Despite the legal jargon (albeit with a few sparks of technical details), the reading of the document reveals some interesting aspects in regard to cyber security.
We are in the midst of an important societal conversation about fair pay. But what do we mean by ‘fair’? Do those who contribute more deserve more? And is fair pay a corporate issue - or an issue for governments to solve using the levers at their disposal?
The Swiss Entertainment and Media Outlook presents 5-year annual historical data and forecasts for the next five years across eleven industry segments, plus an annually adapted deep-dive into a hot topic and a special focus report on current media trends.
On 1 February 2017 the Federal Council initiated a consultation process in order to amend Swiss banking regulations. Its aim was to create appropriate regulations for FinTech companies operating outside the traditional financial sector, taking into account the specific risk potential of their respective business models. The proposed revision included amendments to both the Banking Act (“BA”) and the Banking Ordinance (“BO”). The consultation lasted until May 2017. On 5 July 2017 the Federal Council adopted the new Swiss regulatory framework in as far as it concerned the BO. The new regime came into force on 1 August 2017 to enable FinTech companies to benefit from these new rules with immediate effect.
Neue Technologien und Mitbewerber wie junge Insurtech-Unternehmen stellen bewährte Geschäftsmodelle der Versicherungsbranche in Frage. PwC Schweiz hat zu diesen Trends fünf Thesen entwickelt.
The private sector needs to engage with NGOs, governments and policy makers in respect of migration policies, which includes irregular migration and integration of migrants. This allows private sector representatives to discuss the impact of the global refugee crisis on business and mobility programmes.
The double taxation agreement between Switzerland and Liechtenstein (DTA CH-LI ) is applicable since 1 January 2017. To benefit from the agreement, an entity or individual has to be resident in one or both of the contracting states. The term “resident” requires closer inspection when used in connection with a Foundation (Stiftung), Establishment (Anstalt) or Trust Enterprise (Trust reg.) according to Liechtenstein law.
Blockchain’s potential to transform business is already manifesting itself in industries such as insurance. But what could the technology do for HR? We brought together some blockchain experts with HR leaders to explore its possible impacts.
On 29 June 2017 the Government of the Principality of Liechtenstein issued a press release stating that Liechtenstein has signed an additional Double Taxation Agreement (DTA) with Monaco. The DTA between Liechtenstein and Monaco is intended to increase the legal certainty for investors and strengthen the close cooperation between the two countries.
In the past, managing change has all too often been equated with (belated) project communications and training. More recently, however, experts have concurred that digital transformation, and ultimately its success, hinges on both the organisation and the people involved. Despite this, robotic process automation (RPA) and artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives in particular still tend to focus very much on the technology, paying little heed to how the organisation is going to keep pace. But if you want to harness the full potential of transformation in terms of saving costs and upgrading the work your people do, you have to make changes affecting your business model, organisation, culture and individual people early on.
On 9 June 2017 the Government of the Principality of Liechtenstein issued a press release stating that Liechtenstein has been removed from the Polish black list of low-tax countries
Chatbots – digital programs that conduct conversations via auditory or textual methods – are disrupting forms of customer engagement as they effectively meet customers’ needs for enhanced user experience through artificial intelligence.
Opinion paper: Three theories on the consequences of digital transformation for financial service providers
Successful transformation is essential for survival in a highly dynamic and competitive environment. However, there is overwhelming evidence that most such initiatives end in some degree of failure.
This report focuses on findings from Switzerland compared to the rest of the world.
Recent ethical scandals have put corporate culture in the spotlight. They reveal that a weak or toxic corporate culture may encourage inappropriate behavior across the organization.
In every market there are some unique features that investors need to be aware of. With first-hand experience and local teams on the ground, PwC and it's Deal Talk can help.
WikiLeaks, the platform that has in the past released thousands of classified US diplomatic cables and, more recently, emails from the Democratic National Committee, has now published leaked documents which it claims came from the CIA. The documents detail tools the intelligence agency uses for surveillance. This includes notably kits to penetrate computers (from Windows to OS X), mobile phones (iOS, Android) and many other devices.
The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) introduces a mandatory data breach notification regime. Companies should develop or update their internal data breach notification procedures by May 2018. These should comprise incident identification systems as well as incident response plans.
PwC’s Global FinTech Report 2017 shows that FinTech and Financial Services are competing less and instead building more partnerships to turn threats into opportunities: 82% of Swiss respondents plan to increase partnerships over the next three to five years. The report concludes that the Swiss Financial Services industry can largely benefit from FinTech innovation in a number of areas and that 75% of Swiss respondents plan to adopt blockchain applications over the next three years.
AFME has recently commissioned a report from PwC, outlining the operational impacts and transformation challenges that Brexit poses to the provision of banking services in the EU.
Delegation of regulatory material tasks (art. 66 CISO-FINMA) must be reflected in your organizational documents.
In May 2016, the new EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) became effective. In May 2018, after a transposition period of two years, the GDPR will be mandatorily applicable throughout the European Union (EU). Although the GDPR is EU legislation, under certain circumstances it might be also applicable to Swiss and other non-European companies. This is the case if such company has an establishment in the EU. And the GDPR will also be applicable if, according to the newly introduced “Lex loci solutionis”, a non-European company without establishment in the EU is offering goods or services to the European Union’s market or if it is monitoring the behaviour of people living in the EU.
