FINMA-compliant payments for Swiss marketplaces: Do you need a licence?
If you manage customer funds on your Swiss marketplace, conflicts with FINMA can quickly arise. Learn here how you can cleverly outsource this regulatory risk with the right setup.
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Building your own online marketplace is exciting – until you stumble over the FINMA regulations, the Anti-Money Laundering Act (GwG) or the Banking Act (BankG) for the first time. For many founders and platform operators in Switzerland, the legal side of payment processing is a major pain point.
The central question is: If a buyer pays on your marketplace and you forward the money to the corresponding sub-merchant, do you need your own authorisation from the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) for this, or do you have to join a self-regulatory organisation (SRO)?
Here you will learn what Swiss financial market regulation means for you and how you cleverly steer around this legal minefield.
If you route users’ money through your own accounts, you very quickly find yourself on thin legal ice. With the right technical setup, however, you can avoid this problem.
Why are Swiss authorities interested in marketplaces?
Swiss laws for protecting the financial market are strict. As soon as your marketplace receives funds from buyers, parks them in an own account in between and pays them out (minus your commission) to the sellers on your platform, you enter a regulatory grey area.
Depending on the exact business model and contractual arrangement, this can quickly make you a financial intermediary within the meaning of the Anti-Money Laundering Act or even satisfy the offence of the commercial acceptance of public deposits under the Banking Act. Anyone who manages or transfers third-party funds is strictly regulated in order to prevent money laundering and fraud.
The risk of your own pooled account
Many startups start with the simple idea: "Customers pay into our company account, and we transfer the merchants their share at the end of the month." Exactly this approach (operating pooled accounts for third parties) immediately triggers legal problems in Switzerland without the corresponding licences or strictly regulated exception provisions. FINMA does not take unauthorised activity lightly, and the penalties can be severe.
Your two options as a marketplace operator
If you therefore move funds back and forth between two parties on a Swiss platform, you face a strategic decision:
Du wirst zum regulierten Finanzintermediär
Du durchläufst den aufwendigen Prozess, um dich einer SRO anzuschliessen oder (in extremen Fällen) eine FINMA-Bewilligung zu beantragen. Das bedeutet: Hohe rechtliche Beratungskosten, strenge Meldepflichten, das Einrichten einer eigenen Compliance-Stelle und ein immenser laufender bürokratischer Aufwand. Für die meisten Plattformen ist dies wirtschaftlich nicht tragbar.
Du nutzt eine integrierte Marktplatz-Zahlungslösung
Du lagerst den gesamten Zahlungsfluss technisch so aus, dass du nicht mehr als Finanzintermediär agierst. Dein Marktplatz kommt mit dem Geld der Kunden rechtlich nie direkt in Berührung, da die Zahlungsströme über lizensierte Partner im Hintergrund abgewickelt werden.
How Payrexx solves the compliance problem for you
This is exactly where Payrexx's marketplace solution comes in. We enable you to set up something that massively relieves you and helps you avoid conflicts with the strict Swiss financial market regulations.
This works in practice as follows:
Direct routing (Split Payments): When a customer pays on your marketplace, the money does not flow into one big pot in your company account. The transaction is split in the background. Your agreed commission goes to you, the remainder goes directly to the respective merchant.
Automatic KYC (Know Your Customer): Checking the identity of merchants is a legal requirement to prevent money laundering. Payrexx handles the identification and onboarding process for all your sub-merchants in Switzerland.
Focus on technology, not on fiduciary duties: Since the complex payment flows are structured by Payrexx and our regulated acquiring partners, you are out of the line of fire. You merely provide the platform, without having to act as a bank or payment service provider yourself.
Conclusion: Focus on your core business instead of bureaucracy
Regulatory hurdles must not be a blocker for your marketplace growth in Switzerland. Trying to manage the payment flows yourself and navigate through legal grey areas is extremely risky and ties up valuable resources.
With a solution like Payrexx Marketplaces, you cleverly outsource the complexity of split payments and merchant onboarding. This lets you focus on what really matters: scaling your Swiss platform and the satisfaction of your users.
Hinweis:
Dieser Artikel stellt keine verbindliche Rechtsberatung dar. Wir empfehlen Marktplatz-Betreibern in der Schweiz immer, ihr spezifisches Geschäftsmodell (insbesondere bezüglich Unterstellungsfragen beim GwG und BankG) zusätzlich von einem spezialisierten Schweizer Rechtsanwalt prüfen zu lassen.
FAQ: Regulation of marketplace payments in Switzerland
Does a Swiss marketplace need a FINMA licence?
Not automatically. The decisive factor is whether the marketplace itself accepts customer funds, holds them in its own accounts or forwards them to sellers.
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When is a marketplace considered a financial intermediary under the AMLA?
A marketplace can qualify as a financial intermediary within the meaning of Art. 2 para. 3 AMLA if it provides payment services on a professional basis
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What is the problem with a collection account?
If customer funds land on a account of the marketplace and are later paid out to sellers, this can be considered as accepting public deposits. Without the appropriate license, this is delicate; the exception for settlement accounts is narrowly limited.
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What changes with the FINIA reform as of 2027?
The FinTech licence is to be replaced by a new payment institution in FINIG. For marketplaces that do not themselves touch customer funds and work with a licensed PSP, little is likely to change.
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Who handles KYC on a marketplace?
In split payment models, the PSP usually handles the KYC for the sellers. It should be clearly regulated contractually who is responsible for identification, beneficial owners, and ongoing monitoring.
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What is the difference between PSD2/PSD3 and Swiss law?
The EU regulates payment services through PSD2 and, in future, PSD3, while Switzerland does not have a comparable unified payment services act. In Switzerland, regulation arises mainly from BankG, GwG and other financial market decrees.
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For which marketplace models is regulation particularly relevant?
Regulation is particularly relevant for platforms with omnibus accounts, wallets, delayed payouts, escrow-like processes or high payment volumes. The more strongly the marketplace intervenes in the flow of funds, the higher the regulatory risk.
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What should a marketplace legally check before going live?
Before starting, you should check who the payment recipient is, whether customer funds flow through your own accounts, and who verifies sellers. Equally important are payout logic, refunds, chargebacks, and potential obligations under the Banking Act, MLA, or FINMA regulations.
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