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Departing SBA Chairman Warns On Balancing Swiss Capital Rules, Competition

Tom Burroughes

21 September 2026

A former in Geneva since 2010 and has been its vice-chairman since 2016. 

For a heavily regulated sector like the financial centre, therefore, Rohner said he thinks legislation and regulation must be aligned with international norms and keep barriers to market entry low. He noted that protecting clients and safeguarding the stability of the financial system are essential. However, he insisted that competitiveness must also be a goal in its own right, saying that successful regulation stems from carefully weighing these interests against each other.

Possible rule changes
Swiss capital rule changes, if they become law, could mean that UBS would have to hold billions of dollars more Common Equity Tier 1 capital on a pro-forma basis, adding to CET1 changes it has already communicated. In August, lawmakers in Berne proposed a less severe measure on UBS in which the bank would support its foreign subsidiaries with 50 per cent in Common Equity Tier 1 capital, which is far less than the government, which has sought a 100 per cent backing, wanted.

For months, UBS, which is now Switzerland’s only universal bank, has tussled with the government in Berne over proposals on how much shock absorber capital it should be forced to hold. In March 2023, UBS bought Credit Suisse in an emergency deal at the Swiss government’s request after Credit Suisse was hit by a string of scandals and missteps. The takeover revived fears of creating a banking empire that would be “too big to fail.”