AML obligations for Swiss marketplaces: Are you a financial intermediary?

Anyone who mediates 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 lit. b AMLA – and whether this activity exceeds the professional threshold values of the AMLO. If both apply, you need either an affiliation with a self-regulatory organisation (SRO) or a direct FINMA licence.

This guide explains the relevant legal foundations, shows when a marketplace is considered a financial intermediary and when it is not, and describes the specific obligations in the event of subordination – including the option of outsourcing these obligations to a regulated Payment Service Provider (PSP).

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

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

For marketplace operators, Art. 2 para. 3 lit. b AMLA is particularly relevant. This general definition covers individuals who "provide payment services, in particular by carrying out electronic transfers on behalf of third parties or by issuing or managing payment methods such as credit cards and traveller's cheques". Specifically: if your marketplace accepts customer funds and forwards them to sellers, you potentially meet this criterion.

However, whether you are actually subject to subordination as a financial intermediary depends on a second criterion: professional conduct.

2. Criteria for professional conduct according to the AMLO

The Anti-Money Laundering Ordinance (AMLO) defines in Art. 7 when a financial intermediary activity is considered professional. An affiliation or licensing obligation only arises when 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 that processes CHF 200’000 in payments monthly will exceed the threshold of CHF 2 million transaction volume after just ten months. Important: Pursuant to Art. 9 AMLO, money or value transfer services are basically always considered professional – unless they are performed for closely related persons with gross revenue of no more than CHF 50’000 per calendar year.

Activities for closely related persons (e.g. spouses, registered partners) are only taken into account if a gross revenue of CHF 50’000 per calendar year is exceeded (Art. 7 para. 4 AMLO). In practice, this exception hardly ever applies to marketplace models.

3. SRO affiliation vs. direct FINMA subordination

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

Option A: Affiliation with an SRO

A self-regulatory organisation (SRO) is an industry association 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 in Financial Services (VQF), PolyReg, and industry-specific SROs. Affiliation with an SRO is the more practical solution for most marketplaces, as the effort involved is significantly lower compared to a FINMA licence.

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

Option B: Direct FINMA licence

Direct subordination to FINMA is an alternative that is particularly worthwhile in practice for larger or high-risk business models. The licensing process is more elaborate, and FINMA charges fees for the review and ongoing supervision. For most SME marketplaces, this option is disproportionate.

Important: According to Art. 11 para. 1 AMLO, you must submit an application for affiliation or authorisation within two months of switching to professional conduct. Until the completion of the procedure, you may only perform actions that are absolutely necessary to preserve the assets.

4. When a marketplace is not considered a financial intermediary

Not every marketplace where payments flow is automatically subject to the AMLA. There are clear scenarios in which financial intermediation does not occur:

Accessory secondary service

If the payment processing is merely a subordinate secondary service to your main activity, the so-called accessory exception can apply. FINMA Circular 2011/1 mentions as an indicator that the gross revenue from the payment service may amount to a maximum of 10% of the total corporate gross revenue. In addition, the funds used for payment processing must originate from the general funds of the primary service provider.

Auxiliary person of a regulated PSP

Art. 2 para. 2 lit. a no. 2 AMLA exempts auxiliary persons of financial intermediaries authorised or affiliated in Switzerland from the licensing obligation – under clear conditions: The auxiliary person must not act independently, must be integrated into the financial intermediary's organisational measures to combat money laundering, and must be trained accordingly. Practically speaking: If you, as a marketplace operator, use a regulated PSP like Payrexx and completely 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 only functions as an intermediary platform and buyers pay the sellers directly (e.g. via their own payment page), there is no financial intermediation. You neither accept third-party assets nor assist in transferring them.

Below the professional 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 professional criteria under Art. 7 AMLO are met. However, this exception is only temporary – as soon as a threshold value is exceeded, the two-month deadline applies.

5. Obligations in case of AMLA subordination: What to expect

If your marketplace is considered a financial intermediary and is run on a professional basis, you must comply with the following diligence obligations:

Identification of the contracting party (KYC)

Pursuant to Art. 3 AMLA, you must establish the identity of your contracting partners using conclusive documents when establishing a business relationship. For legal entities, this additionally includes verifying the authorisation terms and the identity of the person acting on its behalf.

Establishment of the beneficial owner

Art. 4 AMLA requires you to identify the beneficial owner behind a business relationship – that is, the natural person to whom the assets ultimately belong or who effectively controls the business relationship.

Duty to document

All transactions and investigations must be documented according to Art. 7 AMLA in such a way that qualified third parties can form a reliable opinion. The records must be kept in Switzerland for at least ten years.

Duty to report in case of suspicion (MROS)

Art. 9 AMLA establishes a duty to report if there is a reasonable suspicion of money laundering or terrorist financing. The report is submitted to the Money Laundering Reporting Office (MROS) at the Federal Office of Police. The duty to report must be fulfilled immediately – delay or failure to report can have criminal consequences (Art. 37 AMLA). Parallel to the report, a freezing of assets applies: the assets involved in the report must not be moved until the MROS responds or a statutory period expires.

Internal organisation

As an AMLA-regulated financial intermediary, you must have an internal control system (Art. 8 AMLA). This includes clear responsibilities, a designated reporting officer, training for employees, and transaction monitoring capable of identifying unusual patterns.

6. Checklist: What you should check before starting

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

• Analyze payment flows: Does money flow through an own account or is it directly split by the PSP?

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

• Check professional criteria: Do you exceed any of the thresholds under Art. 7 AMLO (CHF 50’000 gross revenue, 20+ business relationships, CHF 2 million transaction volume)?

• Check accessory exception: Does the payment service account for less than 10% of your corporate revenue?

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

• Plan SRO affiliation: Obtain offers 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 through your PSP?

• Establish MROS reporting process: Define internally who triggers the report to MROS in case of suspicion and how the asset freezing is operatively implemented.

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

• Obtain legal assessment: Have your specific payment flow reviewed by a law firm specialising in financial market law – the boundary can be 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's commission goes to the marketplace, and the remaining amount to the sellers – without the marketplace itself ever touching customer funds. Payrexx handles the KYC and onboarding of sub-merchants, the diligence obligations according to AMLA, and the payouts to the sellers.

All common Swiss payment methods are supported – from TWINT and PostFinance to credit cards and QR bills. Integration is carried out via a documented API that can be integrated into existing platforms.