Anyone who intermediates payments between buyers and sellers on a Swiss marketplace may fall under the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA). The key question is whether you provide «payment services» within the meaning of Art. 2 para. 3 lit. b AMLA – and whether this activity exceeds the professional activity thresholds of the AMLO. If both apply, you need either an affiliation with a self-regulatory organization (SRO) or a direct FINMA license.

This guide explains the relevant legal bases, shows when a marketplace qualifies as a financial intermediary and when it does not, and describes the specific obligations in the event of being subject to AMLA – including the option to outsource these obligations to a regulated Payment Service Provider (PSP).

1. What does «financial intermediary» mean in Swiss law?

Under Swiss law, a financial intermediary is a person who, on a professional basis, accepts third-party assets, holds them, or helps to invest or transfer them. The Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA) distinguishes between two categories: the financial intermediaries supervised under special legislation under Art. 2 para. 2 AMLA (banks, insurers, securities firms) are directly supervised by FINMA. The other financial intermediaries under Art. 2 para. 3 AMLA – the so-called parabanking sector – can choose whether to come directly under the supervision of the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) or join a self-regulatory organization (SRO) recognized by FINMA.

For marketplace operators, Art. 2 para. 3 lit. b AMLA is particularly relevant. This list provision covers persons who “provide payment services, in particular who make electronic transfers for third parties or issue or manage payment instruments such as credit cards and travellers’ cheques”. Specifically: If your marketplace receives customer funds and forwards them to sellers, you potentially meet this criterion.

Whether you are actually subject to supervision as a financial intermediary depends on a second criterion: professional activity.

2. Professional activity criteria under the AMLO

The Anti-Money Laundering Ordinance (AMLO) defines in Art. 7 when a financial intermediary activity is considered professional. Only if at least one of the following criteria is met does an affiliation or license obligation arise:

For marketplaces with regular payment flows, the criteria gross revenue and transaction volume are particularly relevant. A marketplace that processes CHF 200,000 in payments per month exceeds the CHF 2 million transaction volume threshold after just ten months. Important: Money or value transfer business is considered professional under Art. 9 AMLO in principle at all times – unless it is carried out for related persons with gross revenue of no more than CHF 50,000 per calendar year.

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

3. SRO affiliation vs. direct FINMA supervision

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

Option A: Affiliation with an SRO

A self-regulatory organization (SRO) is an industry association recognized 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. An SRO affiliation is the more practical solution for most marketplaces, as the effort is significantly lower compared to a FINMA license.

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

Option B: Direct FINMA license

Direct subjection to FINMA is an alternative that in practice mainly makes sense for larger or higher-risk business models. The licensing process is more time-consuming, and FINMA charges fees for 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 license within two months after becoming professional. Until the process is completed, you may only carry out actions that are strictly necessary to preserve the assets.

4. When a marketplace does not qualify as a financial intermediary

Not every marketplace through which payments flow is automatically subject to AMLA. There are clear constellations in which no financial intermediation exists:

Accessory ancillary service

If payment processing merely constitutes a subordinate ancillary service to your main activity, the so-called accessory exception may apply. FINMA Circular 2011/1 states as an indicator that gross revenue from the payment service must account for no more than 10% of the total company gross revenue. In addition, the funds for payment processing must come from the general funds of the main service provider.

Auxiliary person of a regulated PSP

Art. 2 para. 2 lit. a no. 2 AMLO exempts auxiliary persons of financial intermediaries licensed or affiliated in Switzerland from the duty to be subject to supervision – under clear conditions: The auxiliary person may not appear independently, must be included in the financial intermediary's organizational measures to combat money laundering, and must be trained accordingly. In practical terms: If you, as a marketplace operator, use a regulated PSP such as Payrexx and fully outsource payment processing to it, you potentially act as an auxiliary person and are not yourself subject to supervision.

No money flow through the marketplace

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

Below the professional activity threshold

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

5. Obligations in the event of AMLA supervision: What awaits you

If your marketplace qualifies as a financial intermediary and is professional, you must fulfill the following due diligence obligations:

Identification of the contracting party (KYC)

Under Art. 3 AMLA, when establishing a business relationship you must determine the identity of your contracting parties on the basis of documentary evidence. For legal entities, this additionally includes verification of the signing authority provisions and the identity of the acting person.

Determination of the beneficial owner

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

Documentation obligation

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

Reporting obligation in case of suspicion (MROS)

Art. 9 AMLA establishes a reporting obligation in the event of justified suspicion of money laundering or terrorist financing. The report is made to the Money Laundering Reporting Office Switzerland (MROS) at the Federal Office of Police. The reporting obligation must be fulfilled without delay – any delay or omission can have criminal consequences (Art. 37 AMLA). In parallel with the report, there is an asset freeze: the assets involved in the report may not be moved until MROS responds or a statutory deadline expires.

Internal organization

As a financial intermediary subject to AMLA, you must have an internal control system (Art. 8 AMLA). This includes clear responsibilities, a reporting officer, employee training and transaction monitoring that can identify unusual patterns.

6. Checklist: What you should check before launch

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

1.      Analyze payment flow: Does money flow through your own account or is it split directly by the PSP?

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

3.      Check professional activity criteria: Do you exceed one of the thresholds according to Art. 7 AMLO (CHF 50,000 gross revenue, 20+ business relationships, CHF 2 million transaction volume)?

4.      Check accessory exception: Does the payment service account for less than 10% of your company revenue?

5.      Check auxiliary person model: Are you contractually and organizationally integrated as an auxiliary person of a regulated PSP?

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

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

8.      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.

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

10.  Obtain legal assessment: Have your specific payment flow reviewed by a law firm specializing in financial market law – the delimitation 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 payment of the buyer flows directly via Payrexx:

The commission of the platform goes to the marketplace, the remaining amount to the seller – without the marketplace itself touching customer funds. Payrexx handles KYC and onboarding of sub-merchants, the due diligence obligations under AMLA as well as the payouts to sellers.

All common Swiss payment methods are supported – from TWINT and PostFinance to credit cards and the QR bill. Integration is via a documented API that can be connected to existing platforms.