Start here01
Crypto licence Switzerland
SRO membership for crypto exchanges, brokers, wallets and payment businesses acting as financial intermediaries, usually the fastest route to a compliant launch.
Explore the crypto licenceCrypto & digital assets
regulated in Switzerland
Switzerland is one of the few jurisdictions with a complete digital-asset rulebook, and it is changing in 2027. We work out which regime your crypto business needs (SRO membership, a FINMA licence, a DLT trading-facility authorisation, or none), obtain the token and stablecoin rulings, build the AML framework, and keep you ready for the incoming Crypto-Institution and Payment Instrument categories.
What we cover
Every Swiss digital-asset permission — from token ruling to trading venue.
Start with the question closest to your product. Most ventures begin with an SRO route or a token classification.
Services in detail
Eight digital-asset services — FINMA today, the crypto regime in 2027.
From an SRO affiliation to a DLT trading venue, with the token and stablecoin rulings that settle the legal treatment before you launch.
Token issuers02
Token classification ruling
A written FINMA classification (payment, utility or asset token) before a token generation event, settling whether the token is a security and how issuance is regulated.
Explore this servicePayments · 202703
Stablecoin issuance
Structuring a fiat-referenced token to a defined regime (deposit, collective investment or the incoming Payment Instrument licence) with a FINMA ruling on guarantee and redemption.
Explore this serviceCustodians · 202704
Crypto custody
The custody question — segregation in bankruptcy, the deposit boundary, and the new Crypto-Institution licence for safekeeping, trading and staking arriving in 2027.
Explore this serviceTrading venues05
DLT trading facility licence
The FINMA-licensed venue for multilateral trading of DLT securities with retail access, custody and settlement, the regime under which Switzerland authorised its first venue in 2025.
Explore this serviceFund managers06
Crypto fund
Bringing a crypto or digital-asset fund to market: vehicle choice, the manager-of-collective-assets question, custody of fund assets, and distribution into Switzerland.
Explore this serviceOngoing07
VASP AML & Travel Rule
The anti-money-laundering framework for a virtual-asset service provider: KYC, beneficial ownership, transaction monitoring, the FATF Travel Rule and MROS reporting.
Explore this serviceProtocols & DAOs08
DeFi & DAO structuring
Wrapping a protocol or DAO in a workable Swiss legal form (association, foundation or company) and resolving the regulatory and liability questions decentralised projects raise.
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The decision
Which crypto regime applies — and when none does.
Switzerland does not have a single “crypto licence”. The right permission depends entirely on what your business does with assets and clients. The most common route is SRO membership for businesses acting as financial intermediaries: exchanges, brokers, custodial wallets. Holding clients’ funds on your own book can cross into deposit-taking, which needs a banking or FinTech licence. Running a venue needs a DLT trading facility licence. And a pure technology provider that never touches client assets may need no licence at all. Naming the regime correctly at the start is the whole game.
| Your activity | Likely regime | Supervisor |
|---|---|---|
| Exchange / broker / custodial wallet | SRO membership (→ Crypto-Institution 2027) | An SRO under AMLA |
| Holding client funds on balance sheet | Banking or FinTech licence | FINMA |
| Issuing a stablecoin | Deposit / CISA / Payment Instrument 2027 | FINMA |
| Operating a token trading venue | DLT trading-facility licence | FINMA |
| Crypto fund management | CISA authorisation | FINMA |
| Non-custodial software only | Often none | — |
The table is a starting point. The edges (custody vs non-custody, whether tokens are pooled, how clients are solicited) are where projects get the regime wrong. We settle them in a written classification and regulatory assessment, and obtain the FINMA ruling, before a token event or a launch.
The 2027 shift, in one line
The current FinTech licence is being replaced by two dedicated FINMA categories (a Crypto-Institution licence for custody, trading and staking, and a Payment Instrument Institution licence for stablecoins and payments), expected in 2027 with a one-year transition. Build for the incoming regime now: see our wider financial-regulation practice for the licence mechanics and the AML framework every crypto intermediary needs.
Authoritative sources: FINMA’s FinTech and crypto guidance is at finma.ch, and the DLT Act sits in the consolidated federal law at fedlex.admin.ch.
Related
Around the crypto desk
The wider regime
Financial regulation
FINMA licences, SRO membership and the 2027 categories in full, the practice the crypto desk sits inside.
Financial regulationOngoing duty
AML & compliance
The KYC, monitoring, Travel Rule and audit function every Swiss crypto intermediary must run, in-house or outsourced.
AML & complianceThe entity
Company formation
The Swiss AG or GmbH your crypto venture needs first, with the substance a licence application rests on.
Company formation
FAQ
Crypto regulation in Switzerland, answered.
01Do I need a licence for a crypto business in Switzerland?
It depends on what the business does. Most crypto exchanges, brokers and wallet providers act as financial intermediaries and need membership of a Self-Regulatory Organisation (SRO) under the Anti-Money Laundering Act, not a full FINMA licence. Holding client crypto or fiat on your own balance sheet can tip you into deposit-taking, which requires a banking or FinTech licence; running a trading venue needs a DLT trading-facility licence. We confirm the regime in a written assessment before you build anything.
02What is changing for crypto firms in 2027?
Following a federal consultation that closed in February 2026, FINMA is introducing a dedicated Crypto-Institution licence for custody, trading and staking, and a Payment Instrument Institution licence for stablecoin issuers and payment services. Entry into force is expected in 2027 with a one-year transition. New applicants should structure now for the incoming regime; existing SRO members and FinTech-licence holders will need a migration plan. We scope both the current route and the 2027 destination together.
03How is a token classified under Swiss law?
FINMA classifies tokens by economic function into payment tokens, utility tokens and asset tokens, with hybrids judged on their dominant feature. The classification drives everything that follows: whether the token is a security, whether issuance is a regulated activity, and how it is taxed. We obtain a written FINMA classification (a no-action-style ruling) before a token generation event, so the legal treatment is settled rather than assumed.
04Can I issue a stablecoin from Switzerland?
Yes, but the structure decides the regime. Depending on design, a stablecoin can be treated as a deposit (banking or FinTech licence), a collective investment, or a payment instrument under the incoming 2027 category, and the issuer almost always has AML obligations. FINMA has published specific stablecoin guidance, including on guarantees and redemption. We map the design to the regime and obtain a ruling before launch.
05What is a DLT trading facility?
The DLT Act created a licensed venue (the DLT trading facility) for multilateral trading of DLT securities, including admitting retail participants and providing custody and settlement in one place. Switzerland authorised its first DLT trading facility in 2025. It is a FINMA licence with capital and organisational requirements; we advise whether your venture needs one or can operate under a lighter arrangement.
06What AML duties does a crypto business have?
A Swiss crypto financial intermediary must identify customers and beneficial owners, monitor transactions, apply the FATF Travel Rule to transfers, screen against sanctions, and report suspicious activity to MROS. These duties are supervised by your SRO and audited annually. We build the AML framework, appoint or outsource the AML officer, and prepare you for the SRO audit. See our dedicated AML practice.
07What is the Swiss DLT Act?
The Distributed Ledger Technology Act is a package of amendments, fully in force since 1 August 2021, that adapted existing Swiss law to blockchain rather than creating a separate crypto code. It introduced ledger-based securities (rights issued and transferred directly on a blockchain with the same effect as paper securities) and a new authorisation category, the DLT trading facility, for venues that trade and settle tokenised assets. It also clarified that crypto assets held in custody can be segregated for the client in the custodian's bankruptcy. The Act is why a token can be a genuine security in Switzerland, not merely a contractual claim.
08Is a Swiss structure an alternative to an EU MiCA licence?
It can be. Switzerland is not in the EU, so MiCA does not apply here and there is no passport between the two regimes. A crypto business serving European users chooses between authorisation under MiCA in an EU member state and a Swiss structure: an SRO affiliation now, or a FINMA licence where the activity is prudential, moving to the dedicated 2027 crypto categories. Each route reaches a different market and a different supervisor. We map the activity to both options so the choice is made on substance rather than reputation.
09Do I need a banking licence to hold clients' crypto?
Not always. Under the DLT Act, crypto assets held in custody can be kept available to the client and segregated from the custodian's estate in a bankruptcy, which keeps pure custody outside the deposit-taking rules that trigger a banking licence. The picture changes once you pool client assets, lend against them or pay interest: that can become deposit-taking and need a banking or FinTech licence. The dividing line is whether the client keeps a claim to the specific assets. We assess the custody model before it is built, not after.
10Why do so many crypto firms set up in Zug?
Zug, often called Crypto Valley, combines a low cantonal tax burden, an administration used to digital-asset companies, and proximity to FINMA-recognised SROs and service providers that understand the sector. It is convention rather than a legal requirement: a crypto business can incorporate in any canton. We run one of our two offices in Zug and form companies there and in Zurich, matching the canton to the tax and substance profile of the business.
Building something with tokens or crypto?
Send us two lines on the product. A partner replies with the likely Swiss regime (SRO, FINMA, DLT or none) and what the 2027 rules will mean for it, before you commit.