Following the adoption by the Parliament of the Federal Act on the Adaptation of Federal Law to Developments in Distributed Ledger Technology, the FDF issued a consultation on the blanket ordinance in the area of blockchain. This would incorporate the legislative amendments voted by Parliament into law at federal ordinance level. The consultation ends on 2 February 2021.

The Parliament adopted the Federal Act on the Adaptation of Federal Law to Developments in Distributed Ledger Technology, which amends specific provisions in 10 existing federal acts.

The council passed a law to adapt federal laws to developments in the technology of distributed electronic registers.

The FC adopted the dispatch on the further improvement of the framework conditions for distributed ledger technology (DLT)/blockchain. The proposal is aimed at increasing legal certainty, removing barriers for applications based on DLT and reducing the risk of abuse.

The FC was informed about opportunities and challenges associated with stablecoins. It said that Switzerland will continue to actively monitor discussions on new digital technologies such as distributed ledger technology/blockchain and that the country is generally open to innovative approaches in the financial market.

The FC issued a consultation on the adaptation of federal law to developments in distributed ledger technology (DLT), saying it wants to increase legal certainty, remove hurdles for DLT-based applications and limit risks of misuse.

The draft serves to further improve the regulatory framework for DLT in Switzerland, in particular in the financial sector.

The council issued a report on the legal framework for distributed ledger technology and blockchain. It said that the existing legal framework offered adequate regulation in respect of new technologies.