FINMA eyeing more power over banks. Will it make a difference?

Bonus clawbacks, more power to fine banks, and a senior management regime that clearly identifies individual executives’ responsibilities for key governance areas are all options being considered by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) in response to the collapse of Credit Suisse last year.

In its report on the crisis, published in December, the regulator pointed out the Credit Suisse collapse was not unpredictable.

“FINMA increasingly intensified its supervisory and enforcement activities at Credit Suisse over the past few years and instituted more and more incisive measures,” it said. Despite the regulator reaching the limits of its current powers, these measures proved inadequate.