An overview of last year's AMLA rulings by the Federal Supreme Court

Last year (2024), the Federal Supreme Court handed down a total of thirteen rulings in the area of money laundering and financial offenses. Four of these rulings are particularly noteworthy as they concern the duty of care of financial intermediaries.

A first ruling(6B_271/2022) showed that banks bear joint responsibility with regard to due diligence obligations when verifying the identity and origin of client funds. In another case(7B_685/2023) , it is emphasized that without a necessary FINMA license, a violation of the AMLA can be established, as registration and licensing regulations are violated. Another important ruling (2C_1010/2022) confirms that banks are entitled to identify beneficial owners and pass on their information within the scope of international administrative assistance. The importance of due diligence for financial intermediaries and the connection to fraud scandals is also emphasized once again in a further ruling(7B_982/2023) . Ultimately, it was decided that a notice of seizure does not constitute a basis for assuming a risk of money laundering.