Anti-Money Laundering Act obligations for Swiss marketplaces: Are you a financial intermediary?

Anyone brokering payments between buyers and sellers on a Swiss marketplace may fall under the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA). The decisive factor is whether you provide "payment services" within the meaning of Art. 2 para. 3 let. b AMLA – and whether this activity exceeds the commercial thresholds of the AMLO. If both apply, you require either affiliation with a self-regulatory organisation (SRO) or direct FINMA authorisation.

This guide explains the relevant legal basis, demonstrates when a marketplace is considered a financial intermediary and when it is not, and outlines the specific obligations arising from subordination – including the option to outsource these duties to a regulated payment service provider (PSP).

1. What does "financial intermediary" mean under Swiss law?

Under Swiss law, a financial intermediary is understood to be a person who, on a commercial basis, accepts, keeps in safe custody, or helps to invest or transfer external assets. The Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA) distinguishes between two categories: financial intermediaries supervised under special legislation pursuant to Art. 2 para. 2 AMLA (banks, insurance companies, securities firms) are directly supervised by FINMA. The other financial intermediaries pursuant to Art. 2 para. 3 AMLA – the so-called parapanking sector – can choose whether to submit directly to the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) or join a self-regulatory organisation (SRO) recognised by FINMA.

For marketplace operators, Art. 2 para. 3 let. b AMLA is particularly relevant. This statutory definition covers persons who "provide services related to payment transactions, in particular by carrying out electronic transfers on behalf of third parties, or who issue or manage means of payment such as credit cards and travellers' cheques". Specifically: if your marketplace accepts customer funds and forwards them to sellers, you potentially fulfil this statutory definition.

Whether you are actually subject to subordination as a financial intermediary, however, depends on a second criterion: commerciality.

2. Commerciality criteria under the AMLO

Art. 7 of the Anti-Money Laundering Ordinance (AMLO) defines when a financial intermediary activity is considered commercial. An obligation to affiliate or obtain authorisation only arises once at least one of the following criteria is met:

For marketplaces with regular payment transactions, the gross revenue and transaction volume criteria are particularly relevant. A marketplace processing EUR 200,000 in payments per month exceeds the threshold of EUR 2 million in transaction volume after just ten months. Important: Money or value transfer services are generally always deemed commercial under Art. 9 AMLO – unless carried out for related persons with gross revenue of at most EUR 50,000 per calendar year.

Activities for related persons (e.g. spouses, registered partners) are only taken into account once gross revenue exceeds EUR 50,000 per calendar year (Art. 7 para. 4 AMLO). In practice, this exemption rarely applies to marketplace models.

3. SRO affiliation vs. direct FINMA subordination

Once commerciality is established, you have two options as a financial intermediary in the parabanking sector:

Option A: Affiliation with an SRO

A self-regulatory organisation (SRO) is an industry organisation recognised by FINMA that supervises its members and monitors compliance with AMLA obligations. In Switzerland, there are several SROs, including the Association for Quality Assurance of Financial Services (VQF), PolyReg, and industry-specific SROs. SRO affiliation is the more practical solution for most marketplaces, as the effort involved is significantly lower compared to FINMA authorisation.

Costs: The admission fee at an SRO such as PolyReg is approx. EUR 1,600. Annual membership fees vary depending on the size of the business and start at around EUR 1,500 to EUR 5,000 for smaller financial intermediaries. In addition, there are audit costs, which can range from EUR 3,000 to EUR 15,000 per year depending on complexity.

Option B: Direct FINMA authorisation

Direct subordination to FINMA is an alternative that, in practice, is worthwhile primarily for larger or higher-risk business models. The authorisation process is more complex, and FINMA levies fees for the review and ongoing supervision. For most SME marketplaces, this option is disproportionate.

Important: Under Art. 11 para. 1 AMLO, you must submit an application for affiliation or authorisation within two months of transitioning to commercial activity. Until the procedure is concluded, you may only perform acts that are strictly necessary to preserve assets.

4. When a marketplace is not deemed a financial intermediary

Not every marketplace processing payment flows is automatically subject to the AMLA. There are clear scenarios in which no financial intermediation exists:

Accessory ancillary service

If payment processing merely represents a subordinate ancillary service to your primary activity, the so-called accessoriness exemption may apply. FINMA Circular 2011/1 cites as an indicator that the gross revenue from the payment transaction service may constitute at most 10% of the company's total gross revenue. Furthermore, the funds for payment processing must originate from the general funds of the primary service provider.

Auxiliary person of a regulated PSP

Art. 2 para. 2 let. a item 2 AMLO exempts auxiliary persons of financial intermediaries authorised or affiliated in Switzerland from the obligation of subordination – under clear conditions: the auxiliary person must not act independently, must be incorporated into the financial intermediary's organisational measures to combat money laundering, and must be trained accordingly. In practice, this means: if you, as a marketplace operator, use a regulated PSP such as Payrexx and fully outsource payment processing to them, you potentially act as an auxiliary person and are not subject to subordination yourself.

No cash flow through the marketplace

If your marketplace functions merely as an intermediary platform and buyers pay sellers directly (e.g. via their own payment page), there is no financial intermediation. You neither accept third-party assets nor assist in their transfer.

Below the commerciality threshold

Even if a financial intermediary activity within the meaning of Art. 2 para. 3 AMLA is present, no affiliation obligation arises as long as none of the commerciality criteria under Art. 7 AMLO are met. However, this exemption is only temporary – as soon as a threshold is exceeded, the two-month deadline applies.

5. Obligations under AMLA subordination: What to expect

If your marketplace qualifies as a financial intermediary and commerciality is established, you must fulfil the following due diligence obligations:

Identification of the contracting party (KYC)

Under Art. 3 AMLA, you must verify the identity of your contracting partners using reliable documents when establishing a business relationship. For legal entities, this additionally includes verifying power of attorney provisions and the identity of the person acting.

Establishing the identity of the beneficial owner

Art. 4 AMLA requires that you identify the beneficial owner behind a business relationship – i.e. the natural person who ultimately owns the assets or effectively controls the business relationship.

Duty of documentation

All transactions and clarifications must be documented in accordance with Art. 7 AMLA in such a way that qualified third parties can form a reliable judgement. The records must be retained in Switzerland for at least ten years.

Duty to report upon suspicion (MROS)

Art. 9 AMLA establishes a duty to report in cases of substantiated suspicion of money laundering or terrorist financing. The report is submitted to the Money Laundering Reporting Office Switzerland (MROS) at the Federal Office of Police. The duty to report must be fulfilled immediately – delay or failure to report can lead to criminal consequences (Art. 37 AMLA). In parallel to the report, an asset freeze applies: the assets involved in the report must not be moved until MROS responds or a statutory deadline expires.

Internal organisation

As an AMLA-subordinated financial intermediary, you must have an internal control system (Art. 8 AMLA). This includes clear responsibilities, an appointed compliance/reporting officer, employee training, and transaction monitoring capable of detecting unusual patterns.

6. Checklist: What you should check before launching

Before launching your marketplace with payment functionality, you should systematically clarify the following points:

• Analyse payment flow: Does money flow through a dedicated account or is it split directly by the PSP?

• Verify financial intermediation: Do you meet the statutory definition of Art. 2 para. 3 let. b AMLA (payment services)?

• Check commerciality criteria: Do you exceed any of the thresholds pursuant to Art. 7 AMLO (EUR 50,000 gross revenue, 20+ business relationships, EUR 2 million transaction volume)?

• Check accessoriness exemption: Does the payment transaction service account for less than 10% of your company's revenue?

• Check auxiliary person model: Are you contractually and organisationally integrated as an auxiliary person of a regulated PSP?

• Plan SRO affiliation: Obtain quotes from VQF, PolyReg, or an industry-specific SRO and plan the lead time (typically 2–4 months).

• Define KYC processes: How do you identify sellers on your marketplace? Manually, via video identification, or via your PSP?

• Establish MROS reporting process: Define internally who triggers the report to MROS in the event of suspicion and how the asset freeze is implemented operationally.

• Ensure documentation: Set up a system for the ten-year retention of records.

• Obtain legal assessment: Have your specific payment flow reviewed by a law firm specialising in financial market law – the legal distinction is complex in individual cases.

7. How Payrexx supports you with AMLA compliance

Payrexx is a Swiss payment service provider (PSP) with a marketplace payment solution designed specifically for platform operators. Through the split payment model, the buyer's payment flows directly via Payrexx:

The platform commission goes to the marketplace, the remaining balance to the seller – without the marketplace itself handling customer funds. Payrexx handles the KYC and onboarding of the sub-Comerciantes, the due diligence duties in accordance with the AMLA, as well as the payouts to the sellers.

All standard Swiss payment methods are supported – from TWINT and PostFinance to credit cards and QR-bill. Integration takes place via a documented API that can be seamlessly incorporated into existing platforms.