With effect from 1 January 2021, funds registered with FINMA for marketing in Switzerland will be required to simultaneously publish on the UCITS recognised Swiss electronic publication platform any communications to investors relating directly or indirectly to an amendment of the fund documents of the UCITS. This follows an amendment of the FINMA Collective Investment Schemes Ordinance (CISO-FINMA).

This publication requirement relates to any investor communication relating to an amendment of the fund documents regardless of the form (i.e. actual publications, letters to investors, notifications to investors via websites and other possible forms relating directly or indirectly).

The Swiss publication must include the required Swiss disclosures and may not contain references to funds/sub-funds not registered in Switzerland.

As the Swiss publication should occur simultaneously with the issuance of the investor communication, any delay in the Swiss publication should be kept to a minimum.

Other than the introduction of this additional publication requirement, the procedures in case of amendments to fund documents will remain the same as before 1 January 2021, i.e. the FINMA filing deadline will still be 30 days from the effective date of the amendments and the other required documents will remain the same. Publication and FINMA notification requirements in cases of mergers, liquidations and de-registrations will also remain unchanged.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.