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e-Reg is a Swiss RegTech. It dematerialises and simplifies working with financial regulations. It also facilitates collaborative working in project mode. We take a closer look at the various type of e-Reg customers. Discover the features and benefits of our tool for each of them, whether they are professionals in the financial services sector, consultants or lawyers.

1 – e-Reg, a Swiss RegTech solution that focuses on managing financial regulation

Financial regulation remains an area that often lacks simplicity for its various players, whether they work directly in financial services or in a consultancy firm. Acts, ordinances and circulars issued by FINMA follow one another and add to one another as each global financial crisis unfolds.

1.1 – Financial regulation can be simplified

We firmly believe that the regulatory complexity experienced in Switzerland can be mitigated. We know, from our own experience in the Swiss banking industry, that there is a need for a tool to make regulatory work easier. Hence, we developed e-Reg, a cutting-edge RegTech platform, to alleviate the burdens associated with regulatory compliance for all stakeholders involved.

1.2 – The essential functionalities of e-Reg for financial regulation

e-Reg users have access to two types of RegTech services for their financial regulation activities.

1.2.1 – Document management

e-Reg is first and foremost a search tool for acts, FINMA ordinances and circulars, texts relating to self-regulation, and so on. Our RegTech solution provides the full context of a search as well as regulatory developments, such as the Basel III final. The results include clickable links for easy navigation from one regulation to another.

e-Reg also allows users to consult procedures and directives internal to the financial institution, which enriches the analysis. Users can also add comments and have access to online libraries.

1.2.2 – Collaborative management in project mode

e-Reg can also be used to manage cross-functional projects such as :

• Transferring knowledge between teams, particularly in the event of absences during holidays and when new recruits are hired with little training in regulations.
• Implementing a regulatory change and collecting internal analyses in the event of consultation with the authorities or during an impact study on a new regulation.

2 – e-Reg, a solution for the financial services sector within Swiss banks

The first category of customers targeted by e-Reg are employees in the Swiss banking sector who are faced with the issue of compliance and regulatory requirements.

2.1 – The benefits of e-Reg for the bank’s finance department

The finance function frequently faces decisions that significantly influence regulatory ratios and compliance across diverse regulations. Navigating these realms entails referencing myriad texts, often layered with overlapping regulations. Moreover, professionals in the banking sector must contend with the additional complexity of adhering to foreign regulatory frameworks.

It’s essential to have the right information at your fingertips to avoid mistakes and negative comments from the regulator. A finance department has everything to gain by using e-Reg to structure its research and analysis. What’s more, it’s also a way of improving regulatory knowledge and training thanks to our platform.

💡 Find out how RegTech makes it easier to document special treatments.

2.2 – e-Reg’s collaborative function, a real plus for in-house lawyers

They sometimes carry out regulatory monitoring, a task for which they rarely have powerful tools. This is precisely one of the strengths of our RegTech solution. In fact, e-Reg systematically provides all the context surrounding a regulatory search, including draft changes to legislation. Everything is directly integrated in the same place, making analysis easier. The person in charge of the watch can easily add comments. They can notify a colleague. All their work remains tracked and accessible from the dashboard.

2.3 – Risk managers: potential users of RegTech

These professionals make extensive use of regulation in their risk monitoring activities. They take a close interest in regulatory changes, even if they do not personally manage such projects. They appreciate the functionalities of our e-Reg platform for its regulatory work and research. This ensures that the bank reduces its risk of non-compliance.

3 – e-Reg, a platform for professionals advising banks on financial regulation

Banks and financial institutions call on external specialists to manage regulatory compliance. e-Reg is also aimed at all these potential players in financial regulation in Switzerland.

3.1 – Financial regulation consultancies

There are many companies involved in financial regulation in Switzerland. The largest are generalists. Others, smaller and more specialised, offer specific expertise. In both cases, RegTech is a real asset for these professionals to increase efficiency and deliver more value to their clients.

3.1.1 – Partners and employees of small firms involved in financial regulation

In these small, multi-skilled structures, using RegTech for regulatory management and research provides immediate work comfort for employees. In their compliance missions, they have to carry out numerous searches in thousands of pages of regulations.

The tool provides them with :

• fast and efficient search ;
• exhaustive coverage of current regulatory sources and planned developments, with full context;
• features for sharing information within the firm, which is also a good way of improving staff training.

3.1.2 – Junior consultants in large audit firms

Even large companies have every interest in using our RegTech solution, particularly for their junior consultants. It provides them with a totally digitised way of finding their way through the various layers of regulation and of learning.

e-Reg’s functionalities help managers to share their analyses of regulatory developments and the regulations in force with younger colleagues. They can also assign tasks directly in the tool and notify them. They can monitor progress on the dashboard.

In addition, e-Reg offers the option of adding the firm’s own policies and directives to the platform, in a private and segregated environment. This enriches the regulatory analysis and helps junior members to apply internal rules and guidelines.

3.2 – Law firms working with Swiss banks

The last typical client group for e-Reg is lawyers. As in the case of consultancy firms, large specialist firms work alongside smaller structures. The latter are multidisciplinary and work on a case-by-case basis on regulatory issues.

Even if they are all used to using websites specialising in financial regulations, the demonstration of our tool shows that technology saves them time. They work faster. They can keep perfect track of their analyses as the texts are commented on.

RegTech provides simple, operational solutions for most players in financial regulation. With e-Reg, our customers gain in efficiency. They reduce the cost of compliance. They also make it easier to pass on knowledge within their teams, which is essential for junior staff as well as for collaborative projects. To improve your understanding of the tool, sign up for an online demonstration of e-Reg.

The prudential authorities regularly launch consultations with the banks. This is the case when there is a change in the text of a law, a FINMA ordinance, etc. The financial services sector also carries out impact analyses in response to regulatory changes. The aim here is to measure the consequences of these changes for the bank’s internal operations. In both cases, RegTech helps these professionals to structure their reflections and analyses. Find out how to manage your regulatory consultation or impact study strategy using e-Reg.

1 – e-Reg, our RegTech tool for Switzerland

The e-Reg platform is a RegTech solution specially designed for Swiss financial services players involved in financial regulation.

1.1 – RegTech, technologies at the service of financial regulation

RegTechs offer solutions based on the latest technologies to make it easier for financial institutions to achieve and maintain compliance. There are many practical applications, which we detail in our article defining RegTech and outlining its strengths.

These Tech companies exploit Big Data, artificial intelligence, machine learning and biometrics. They also use automation and secure workflows. These technologies make it possible to analyse and process large quantities of information and data. This is the case for financial regulation. Its content is very dense and constantly changing. This is why e-reg, the Swiss RegTech tool, is designed to simplify regulatory work.

1.2 – e-Reg functionalities: practical benefits for employees in the financial services sector

Our RegTech solution includes a wide range of functions, from searching for information to managing libraries or a regulatory change project, for example. From knowledge management to collaborative strategy, read our article describing all the possible uses of e-Reg.

The various actions proposed contribute to:

• Saving time for those responsible for regulatory issues, and therefore reducing compliance costs;
• improved efficiency and reduced risk of non-compliance;
• Simplification of financial regulations, with all texts accessible in a single, digital location;
• improved knowledge and transmission of regulatory knowledge;
• facilitating regulatory activities in project mode as part of a regulatory change or consultation.

2 – Using RegTech for consultation as part of a regulatory project in Switzerland

The Federal Council, the FDF or FINMA, for example, may decide to launch consultation procedures with a view to amending legislation, ordinances or circulars. The financial services industry can contribute by responding to this type of consultation.

2.1 – Example of a consultation: draft amendment to the Capital Adequacy Ordinance

In the event of a regulatory consultation, the question arises of how to document and manage the work internally. We explain our methodology using a recent example: the consultation on the amendment to the Capital Adequacy Ordinance (CAO).

On 4 July 2022, the consultation process opened to incorporate the final Basel III provisions into Swiss law. When the Federal Department of Finance published the amendments of the Capital Adquacy Ordinance on 29 November 2023, it took into account some of the feedback received during the consultation.

2.2 – Organising the consultation: the solution proposed by e-Reg

Our RegTech tool includes a function for adding comments. This means that financial services can analyse and express their point of view on the subject of each consultation. Any bank is free to decide whether or not to take internal action to participate in the consultation. With e-Reg, each bank can easily gather all the opinions of its internal stakeholders. It can then aggregate them easily using the tool and without delay.

2.3 – Example of comments generated as part of a regulatory consultation

Continuing with the example of a consultation relating to the amendment of the CAO, here is how to proceed on the e-Reg platform.

a – Search using the keyword “pCAO“

The user enters the expression “pCAO” in the search engine. You will obtain all the information on this consultation, including for example :

The window on the right of the screen shows the comments already created on this item 4b “Portefeuille de la banque”. At the bottom of the same window, employees who have access to e-Reg can click on “add a comment” to take part in their bank’s internal consultation.

b – Monitoring comments generated by e-Reg as part of this consultation process

Each user then has access to a dashboard for an overall view of actions and comments. By typing “pCAO” again in the search bar on this page, e-Reg displays all the comments created. All these comments can be exported to Excel (see 3.3. below).

3 – Managing the impact analysis of a new financial regulation with e-Reg

Our RegTech tool makes it possible, in the same way as for a consultation, to record employees’ analyses and opinions on a regulatory change when it is implemented.

3.1 – Gathering comments from within the banking institution

The aim of the study is to estimate the impact of changes to the regulatory framework on a bank’s internal operations. This collaborative function facilitates consultation and the sharing of information and analyses. Our system concentrates all the information in a single, collaborative dematerialised space.

The tool allows users to be mentioned in order to gather their input on a particular point.

3.2 – Example of a comment added to our RegTech tool

During the implementation of the new FINMA circular 23/01 on operational risks and resilience, here is a comment added to the platform for marginal number 101 :

As with a consultation, the responsible of the impact study can lists all the comments and analyses made by contributors on his dashboard:

Each e-Reg user can export all their comments to Excel (see below).

3.3 – Additional e-Reg functionality: exporting comments

The person responsible for the regulatory consultation project or impact assessment can easily export all comments to Excel. This is useful for reworking them. It’s also handy for preparing reports, particularly if several departments are involved.

e-Reg’s collaborative features are ideal for gathering opinions and comments. Whether it’s a question of consulting the authorities or analysing the consequences of a new regulation, adopting RegTech simplifies the process. To get a better idea of how our e-Reg solution makes your regulatory work easier, why not arrange a personalised demonstration of the tool?

Financial regulation is often a complex issue for Swiss banks. The same applies to their lawyers and consulting firms. How can they combine a good level of compliance and risk mitigation, with real efficiency at work, when they’re running out of time? We believe that these professionals have everything to gain from adopting a RegTech regulatory search tool. Find out more in this article about the benefits and functionalities of this type of solution for the world of finance.

1 – Why is regulatory search often a pain point for banks?

The Swiss financial sector is complex. It comprises multiple layers of regulation. Laws, ordinances, FINMA circulars and self-regulation are essential elements of the Swiss regulatory landscape for banks. The texts overlap. They are subject to regular changes. Sometimes, for specific questions, financial services specialists need to study additional documents. These include explanatory reports and consultation reports. It’s often difficult to keep track of all this information.

1.1 – The complexity of multi-source, evolving financial regulation

One of the challenges faced by financial professionals in Switzerland is navigating the vast amount of text relating to financial regulation. Whether they emanate from the Swiss prudential authorities, the Basel Committee or European and international institutions, there are numerous sources to consult. Bank employees have to deal with thousands of pages of financial regulations.

From reporting and banking ratios, to risk management and regulatory changes, these financial professionals need to find the right information. The sheer volume of regulatory data requires an understanding of its structure. It also requires keeping abreast of new developments and changes with the various players involved in compliance.

1.2 – Challenge to quickly find the information you are looking for in the regulations

Without access to an effective research tool, these banking industry professionals find it challenging to find the right information quickly. How can they identify not only the relevant regulations, but also related legal documents (explanatory reports, consultation reports, etc.)?

1.3 – Numuerous regulatory texts with a high cost of compliance

The large amount of information that needs to be consulted in order to apply the regulations to banks in Switzerland generates significant financial costs. All this time spent on regulatory research, without adequate tools, represents an expenditure of energy and therefore money. Add to this the risk of non-compliance due to misunderstanding or oversight, and the economic impact is even greater. Reducing these costs is a real challenge for the banking sector.

2 – The need for a RegTech-type regulatory research tool

To quickly find what you need in the regulations, with an up-to-date overview, while reducing risk, adopt a RegTech-type search tool.

2.1 – The need to rationalize document searches with a tool

To avoid having to manually search through many documents, professionals benefit from using an IT solution. It structures their work. This is the case when preparing documentation for special restatements, for example in view of upcoming vacations. It’s also a need within a banking department, or between collaborators in a consultancy firm who want to exchange information efficiently on a regulatory subject.

2.2 – Why use new RegTech technologies?

RegTech or Regulatory Technology refers to a set of IT applications that help banking organizations and the companies that advise them to comply with laws and regulations. These tools use Tech technologies such as automation, artificial intelligence and Big Data,  generally in a cloud environment.

By adopting a Fintech tool specialized in regulation, it becomes possible to streamline searches and track relevant information for regular use. The services offered by RegTechs also make it possible to comment online on texts and share information within a team at a bank or law firm.

2.3 – Making regulations a working tool through structured research

RegTech to search in regulation is a powerful tool. The use of specialized applications in research speeds up the process and increases accuracy. In fact, investigations cover not only the regulations themselves, but also related documents such as explanatory or consultation reports.

What’s more, a regulatory search tool reduces work time by allowing specific keywords or phrases to be entered into an engine. Bank employees no longer have to manually scour several documents or websites. With RegTech, searching for information finally becomes fast and convenient. You reduce the complexity of financial regulation.

RegTech solutions work with constantly updated documentation. They are online research tools. This means you always have an up-to-date overview of regulatory information. And let’s not forget that future regulations are also displayed.

2.4 – Reducing risk with RegTech regulatory research

Having access to an efficient search tool when working with Swiss financial regulations has many advantages. Financial professionals dealing with Swiss regulations can locate relevant information faster and more accurately. The result is a streamlined workflow that helps reduce the risk of non-compliance.

3 – Regulatory research: the advantages of e-Reg, a Swiss RegTech platform

easyReg is a RegTech company. It is dedicated to simplifying financial regulation in the Swiss banking sector.

3.1 – The mission of easyReg, a RegTech specialized in regulatory management and research

At easyReg, we’ve created a RegTech platform to help professionals working with financial regulation. Whether it’s to facilitate day-to-day tasks such as applying essential regulatory ratios or making a regulatory change, for example, e-Reg agilizes your research. Our tool digitizes all work, which improves traceability.

By adopting this technology, you :

• save time on all regulatory tasks;
• Reduce the financial cost of regulatory oversight and compliance;
• increase regulatory compliance and minimize risk.

3.2 – Examples of regulatory research using our RegTech solution

e-Reg enables companies in the Swiss banking sector to carry out their research completely digitally. Technology brings flexibility and speed to this type of task.

Example 1: regulatory search for “virtual currencies”

The June 30, 2023 deadline for implementation of the new CHF 1,000 threshold for virtual currencies is approaching. Search for “virtuellen währungen” to access art. 51a OBA-FINMA, which describes the requirement (2nd search result).

 

 

Example 2: Direct access to specific regulations

Users of the e-Reg service can enter only the number of a FINMA Circular to access it directly. For example, typing “2301” into the search engine will return FINMA Circular 23/01:

 

If you type “2301 47”, you will immediately obtain the text of Mn 47 of the same FINMA Circular 23/01 :

To access art. 22 a of the OBA-FINMA, enter “22a OBA-FINMA” in the regulatory search engine, without forgetting the hyphen:

 

 

3.3 – Other services offered by our RegTech solution

e-Reg is not only a search tool, but also :

• obtaining additional information to the main regulatory search with the presence of context (additional reports and history of financial regulations);
• add personal comments directly in the tool;
• share information or comments within a department (send a notification to the employee);
• collaborative project management, e.g. for a regulatory change, with task allocation and status management;
• knowledge management with traceability of data and information, with comments where appropriate;
• the provision of a multilingual library of applicable regulations, with all relevant links included in the database.

Regulatory research with RegTech makes compliance management much easier. The technology used speeds up the work, makes it more precise, and helps to pass on knowledge as knowledge. By opting for such a tool, a bank or banking consultancy gains in efficiency and reduces the cost of regulation. To convince you, we offer an online demonstration of our e-Reg platform. Make an appointment now!

 

Switzerland’s financial services industry is looking for new tools and technologies to help them manage regulatory and compliance issues. This is what RegTechs are all about. We designed e-Reg with this in mind. In this article, we invite you to discover the RegTech functionalities of our solution, divided into two categories: regulatory knowledge management and collaborative project mode.

1 – RegTechs: objectives, technologies and functionalities

Over the years and after financial crisis, reforms have piled up, making regulation more complex for the financial services sector. Swiss banks and the firms that advise them have everything to gain from adopting these new technologies for their compliance missions.

1.1 – What do RegTechs do and why?

What is RegTech ? Regulatory technology is the term used to describe the set of companies that use technology to offer services to banks and their environment, in order to comply with regulations. In other words, these companies help banks to remain compliant with regulations, or to bring themselves in line with them.

RegTechs operate in a wide range of fields. The services offered can be divided into 4 categories:

• real-time monitoring of financial transactions for fraud detection and anti-money laundering purposes;
• improving customer knowledge, for example through KYC (Know Your Customer) around the topics of identifying and analyzing customer habits;
• regulatory management, such as identifying texts or standards to be implemented in the financial institution;
• collection, analysis and forecasting of large volumes of data.

1.2 – What technologies do Regtechs use?

To offer functionalities that address these diverse issues, this tech sector relies on innovative technologies:

• artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to analyze data (transactions, texts, images);
• big data for processing large volumes of data ;
• automation of workflows and procedures.

1.3 – easyReg, a Swiss RegTech to simplify financial regulation

Recognizing the need for regulatory simplification, we have developed a tool called e-Reg. Available in SaaS mode to all financial services specialists, our application features many practical RegTech functions.

In the rest of this article, we’ll take a closer look at these features, classifying them into two major categories, information management and collaborative management. All these functionalities contribute to :

• improve compliance with regulations and reduce the risk of non-compliance with its induced financial cost ;
• increase and share employee knowledge;
• reduce the time spent on regulations ;
• facilitate collaborative working and change management in project mode.

2 – e-Reg’s RegTech features for regulatory knowledge

e-Reg’s technology focuses first and foremost on the regulatory material itself, the sources of information. Whether legislative texts, ordinances, regulations, explanatory reports from the Federal Department of Finance (FDF) or FINMA, draft acts, etc., the management of financial regulations comprises thousands of pages.

2.1 – Search in the Swiss financial regulations

This functionality is the first perceived use by e-Reg customers. With our application, they can access all regulatory information in a completely digitized way. For the regulatory search, they can choose between entering an expression or a specific text (e.g. FINMA Circular number).

2.2 – Understanding and knowing the regulatory context

Not only does e-Reg respond to a search in financial regulation, it goes further. This RegTech tool completes the online information by providing a global context. At the bottom of the screen, it displays other elements that include a reference to the subject of the search. All information includes clickable links. This makes it easy to navigate from one regulatory reference to another. Our customers can also choose to open new windows when clicking on these links.

2.3 – Managing knowledge within a team or consulting firm

This regulatory management tool also makes it possible to manage knowledge both within banks and among the consulting firms that support them in regulatory matters. All have a single point of access for consulting, analyzing and commenting financial regulatory texts applicable in Switzerland.

Therefore they keep track of their work. They can document any special processes they need to carry out, thanks to RegTech. This e-Reg feature facilitates the transfer of knowledge between teams, particularly during periods of absence or leave. It’s a way of reducing regulatory risks.

2.4 – Regulatory libraries

This RegTech functionality provides a paperless way of storing all compliance-related regulations in Swiss banks and financial institutions. This technological process provides access to information in several languages. It enhances the user experience. These libraries are linked to the knowledge management and team collaboration system.

2.5 – Complement regulations by including internal policies and procedures in the RegTech tool

Here’s another regulatory knowledge management feature. E-reg proposes an optional module for including in the tool the directives and other internal documents essential for implementing regulations. This process takes place in a private, segregated environment. The bank can group together in one place the texts in force in Switzerland, as well as its own procedures or policies.

This enriches the results of a search in the tool. Users have all the information in one place. For example, it’s an interesting RegTech feature to directly consult all the texts (internal and external) applicable to a particular issue. For instance, you can quickly identify relevant internal directives for new employees.

3 – e-Reg features: collaborative mode and project management

Managers and employees in the financial services sector are sometimes looking for solutions to manage their cross-functional projects. How do you get several people working together in the same department or law firm on regulatory tasks? e-Reg also meets these needs, helping to simplify regulations.

3.1 – E-reg: features that encourage collaboration

This is the second focus of our RegTech solution. All online processes are designed to facilitate knowledge exchange, as well as the planning and monitoring of regulatory projects.

a – e-Reg’s comment function

Having up-to-date, centralized regulatory information is great. It’s even better to be able to analyze and comment on it directly in the RegTech tool. This feature allows our customers to insert a comment when reading the regulations.

Click on “Add a comment”.

 

The following window appears, allowing you to select a comment type and status:

All comments entered in e-Reg can be exported to Excel.

b – Informing colleagues in financial services

Collaborative functionality means that the e-Reg user can inform other people in a department, firm or who are working on a regulatory project of the existence of the comment. When adding a comment, you can notify a person. By typing @, you can access the list of e-Reg users in the company:

3.2 – Managing change in banking establishments

The collaborative mode also means that e-Reg is the ideal tool for bringing projects to fruition. With its task tracking and scheduling functions, our application facilitates the management of files such as regulatory changes.

Our RegTech solution allows you to :

• view the status of changes in progress at all times;
• view essential information in the dashboard ;
• create reminders for actions to be carried out on the project ;
• document regulatory changes on an ongoing basis;
• export the dashboard to an Excel file at any time, e.g. for internal reporting purposes.

3.3 – Managing a consultation with authorities or carrying out an impact assessment

e-Reg makes it easy to manage a regulatory consultation. In particular, the application helps to collect comments from employees before drafting a response. This is also the case for a financial institution’s internal analysis of new regulations. This collaborative mode of the tool facilitates the formalization of the impact analysis by the various departments concerned. All these comments can also be exported to Excel.

With all these features, e-Reg is a practical and operational RegTech solution for Swiss banks and the financial services sector in general. The tool is quick to implement. We provide a customized support to all our clients. To improve your perception of the tool and complete your thinking, don’t hesitate to schedule a demonstration with Enrico Giacoletto.

 

Bank employees, consulting firms and lawyers know that financial regulations are becoming increasingly complex after each reform or crisis in the financial markets. So how to simplify banking regulations implementation to limit risk and ensure compliance? We explain the difficulties faced by these professionals, and the comfort provided by a RegTech solution, based on concrete examples.

1 – Banking regulation is becoming more complex

Successive financial market crises, particularly that of 2008, have led to tighter banking regulation at every turn. Recent events, such as the collapse of SVB in the USA and the takeover of CS by UBS, have prompted regulators to modify existing financial regulations and add new ones. The number of constraints and regulatory ratios is increasing. The calculation of each ratio particularly for reporting purposes is becoming more complex.

1.1 – Overlapping regulatory texts in Switzerland and abroad

Banks are faced with the challenge of Swiss regulations, which have become increasingly dense over the years. Let’s not forget the international standards and regulations issued by the Basel Committee, such as Basel III Final, the FSB, the FATF and the European Commission. They have a direct or indirect impact on the Swiss banking sector. In such cases, employees of financial institutions must implement these international regulatory requirements, where applicable. However, they need to be aware of those rules or have access to them.

1.2 – Balancing regulatory excesses and shortcomings

The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) aims to simplify financial regulation for small banks, going beyond the principle of proportionality. It is thus working to identify and then remove certain prudential requirements for small, financially solid banking organizations. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) refers to the difficult balance between excessive and insufficient regulation in a March 2017 communication. It points out that international financial cooperation remains essential, and that a safer financial system through regulation remains largely advantageous. It explains too that it’s necessary to “preserve the fundamental principles of the new global regulatory framework”. 

Recent events in the banking area in both Switzerland and the US confirm this certainty. Financial regulation is not going to simplify in the short to medium term. Particularly, the notion of proportionality in regulation could decrease. For example, SVB has used its small size and lack of complexity as an argument to reduce applicable banking regulation.

1.3 – A lack of simplicity in managing regulatory changes

Financial regulations change frequently. The sources of information to be exploited and the standards with which banks must comply are multiple. What’s more, their implementation timetables are sometimes different. Deploying these standards and banking regulations requires energy and organization, in addition to the traditional activities of these financial services. Both bank employees and consultancy firms suffer from a lack of practical tools for a proper management of financial regulation.

1.4 – A difficult regulatory overview

With so many regulatory sources in Switzerland, the Basel Committee and various international organizations, including institutions in Europe, the overall picture seems complicated. Within the same bank, several departments are responsible for driving regulatory changes. This task requires coordination and consultation. Without an ad hoc system to support these financial teams, managing a regulatory change stays complex. Sometimes, the results are not sufficient to achieve compliance and regulatory requirements.

1.5 – A costly and insufficiently productive compliance

This complex financial regulation generates generally wasted time, loss of productivity and additional costs. This is true not only for bank employees in the legal, finance, risks and compliance departments, but also for the consulting firms that support them. Research and analyses take time.

In addition, these professionals are sometimes faced with the difficulty of interpreting a regulation due to the lack of context surrounding the text. This increases the time spent on compliance items, unless you have a RegTech application that facilitates access to banking regulation.

2 – What tools should be used to simplify banking regulation in Switzerland ?

The stakes of simplifying the implementation of regulations therefore seem really high. All information is being dematerialized worldwide. RegTech players have developed services to facilitate this work for finance professionals. easyReg, for example, offers a totally digital solution to help the Swiss banking sector search regulation information. The tool also enables collaborative management of regulatory changes.

2.1 – RegTech simplifies your regulatory research

For banks, lawyers and consultancies, RegTech is an ideal way to simplify their research in financial regulation.

2.1.1 – The targets of our RegTech application for your regulatory framework management

easyReg offers you an online platform in SaaS mode that : 

• digitizes all your regulatory research work ;
• increases compliance as required by the texts, acts, ordinances, FINMA circulars, etc. you must apply ;
• helps you improve your knowledge of  banking regulations ;
• reduces the total time spent on financial compliance and subsequently its cost.

2.1.2 – How e-Reg regulatory search tool operates

With our keyword search features, you access the regulatory paragraph you’re looking for, and its full context. It takes only a few clicks. We also provide you with all the other regulatory elements that relate to your search. Federal act, ordinances, FINMA circulars or explanatory reports, you have access to all related information. We can also provide you with your colleagues’ comments on these texts.

2.1.3 – Example of a regulatory search with e-Reg, our RegTech tool

Here’s an example using the keyword “virtuellen währungen”. Please note that we offer our RegTech services in 4 languages : English, French, German and Italian. Enter “virtual currency” in the e-Reg search engine. 

You’ll get the following information :

The window at bottom left provides you with all the regulatory context for this search result. Move your mouse over the document sources and click on the one that interests you. It is displayed in the bottom right-hand window.

In the main window at the top of the screen, scroll through the text using the right-hand scroll bar. You will discover clickable links such as “art. 51a Verordnung der Eidgenössischen Finanzmarktaufsicht über die Bekämpfung von Geldwäscherei und Terrorismusfinanzierung im Finanzsektor (GwV-FINMA)”. Click on this link. You can then choose, for example, to display it in a new window. You can also read the context too, at the bottom of the screen :

2.2 – e-Reg, a collaborative tool for regulation professionals

Our Regulatory Technology solution also brings comfort to employees and their officers who are managing regulatory change projects. This is a good manner to simplify the financial regulation in Switzerland.

2.2.1 – Features for collaboration between finance teams

Thanks to e-Reg, bank employees, lawyers and consulting firms have access to an easy-to-use collaborative tool. It guides them in their regulatory research. It helps them exchange information with each other. It’s an excellent way of sharing knowledge within the company. e-Reg also keeps track of the methods used to implement financial regulations. Users of our RegTech solution also find it a useful tool for training junior staff, as well as for managing backups, e.g. for vacations.

Here are the collaborative features of our RegTech tool : 

• input of comments on regulations or on regulatory changes to be made within the company ;
• possibility of tagging a colleague when writing a comment in order to inform them by email;
• dashboard listing all current comments created within the team ;
• assigning a manager to the changes required and monitoring progress through status management.

2.2.2 – Example of knowledge sharing proposed by e-Reg

Let’s continue our example of a regulatory search on the keyword “virtuellen währungen”. If you wish to leave a comment, use the window on the right of the screen :

Click on “add a comment”. The following window will open with a proposal list :

You can choose a comment type and a status. To tag a colleague in the bank or a colleague in your consultancy, use the @ function in the text field. The list of RegTech solution users appears :

To view all comments and statuses, go to the “Collaboration” tab in the RegTech software. You’ll find a variety of criteria to filter the information. They help you manage your banking regulation projects.

To ease the regulatory burden of your staff, there’s nothing better than a RegTech tool like e-Reg. Designed by and for bank compliance actors, it’s the ideal application if you want to simplify banking regulation. To find out more, contact easyReg.

The succession of the financial crises and associated reforms, have made compliance-related jobs in Swiss banks increasingly complex. Fintech-type solutions specialized in the regulatory sector have appeared over the last ten years. These are called RegTechs.

Do you know the definition of RegTech? Do you know what services RegTech companies offer? What is the technology used? In what areas do these companies operate? What benefits do these tools offer? This article answers all of these questions and presents a RegTech solution, e-Reg.

1 – RegTech: definition

There are many types of RegTech with different objectives around regulatory texts and data.

1.1 – What does the word RegTech mean?

RegTech stands for Regulatory Technology. RegTech companies provide services to banking organizations and their environments to help them achieve or maintain compliance with the act and regulations. By definition, RegTechs use innovative technologies such as automation, cloud, artificial intelligence (AI), big data. It is important to note, however, that the definition of RegTech is evolving over time.

1.1.1 – RegTech: FSB definition

FSB proposes the following definition “Any range of applications of FinTech for regulatory and compliance requirements and reporting by regulated institutions.”

1.1.2 – RegTech: definition according to Wikipedia

Wikipedia writes in April 2023 referring to Deloitte’s blog, “RegTech is the use of information technology to improve regulatory and compliance processes. RegTech is most usefully applied to highly regulated industries and activities such as financial services, gaming, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, energy and aviation.”

Wikipedia also adds that RegTech’s focus includes regulatory oversight, reporting and compliance and aims to:

• “improve transparency as well as consistency ;
• standardize regulatory processes;
• remove regulatory ambiguity;
• deliver higher quality results at lower cost.

1.2 – What is a regulatory activity?

For banks and financial institutions, it is a question of fighting against money laundering, protecting data, improving knowledge of their customers, carrying out regulatory reporting and complying with many other applicable regulations. These financial institutions are thus confronted with the complexity of information sources, the evolution of rules as well as the magnitude of the data to be managed. They feel the need to simplify financial regulation, an objective that RegTechs are helping to achieve.

1.3 – What technologies does the RegTech Fintech use?

As tech companies, RegTechs use a variety of innovative techniques. AI and machine learning are used to analyze data, be it photos, texts or financial transactions. This is the case, for example, in the context of the fight against market abuse or for risky transactions. It is also a way to reduce notifications or alerts and improve their relevance. With Big Data, RegTech tools process a very large amount of data. For example, this technology is used to detect fraud or evaluate credit.

In biometrics, these solutions help identify customers and sign electronically. Banks can thus secure their transactions. Some RegTechs offer automated workflows. This saves their customers development costs, thanks to ready-to-use solutions.

2 – What are the areas explored by RegTech?

KPMG’s 2019 study called “Panorama of European RegTech“ details the breakdown of services offered by 242 companies in Europe. We present you the different business lines that appear in it.

In the area of anti-money laundering (AML), RegTechs include transaction monitoring activities as well as the application of the various KYC (Know Your Customer) requirements.

Data protection means compliance with applicable laws (FADP, GDPR, .. .) as well as a secure data storage or access service.

Compliance management is concerned with the management of various regulatory obligations. It is also involved in the recording of transactions and the management of contracts.

Regulatory intelligence is a RegTech business line to help manage data, alert on news and deploy regulatory changes.

The regulatory reporting business supports banks with automation as well as data analysis and management.

Risk management-oriented RegTechs are active in the various risks categories and propose, among others, improved workflows or new approaches.

Finally, the asset management sector is responsible for verifying compliance with the applicable regulations, i.e. FinSA in Switzerland. It also assists in reporting for investment funds and in assessing the financial performance of assets.

3 – What are the benefits of RegTech?

If many Fintech players have specialized in regulation with RegTech, it is because the stakes are immense for banks and their environment.

3.1 – Reduced regulatory costs thanks to RegTechs solutions

The superposition of regulatory texts makes it more complex to maintain compliance and to apply them in banking institutions. This time costs money that everyone in the finance industry is looking to save. RegTech provides just the technology to move faster, automate processes and reduce regulatory cost.

3.2 – Improved efficiency and reduced risk in managing regulatory compliance

Note that the cost of non-compliance is much higher than the investment in innovative tools to avoid it. RegTech is indeed a way to limit the risks and financial penalties in this area.

With RegTech solutions, banks and financial institutions gain efficiency. They can quickly implement efficient solutions for various regulatory issues. With this software, financial institutions avoid significant internal development costs, especially for regulatory change projects.

4 – easyReg, the Swiss RegTech that simplifies financial regulation work

At easyReg, our RegTech solution is to increase the efficiency and quality of processes related to the implementation of financial regulations. We have designed e-Reg, an online and SaaS platform for this purpose. The objective of e-Reg is to simplify and digitize the daily work with financial regulation. Here are the main features offered.

4.1 – Regulatory search function of our e-Reg solution

With our online RegTech tool, our clients can improve their knowledge and understanding of Swiss and international financial regulations. They have access to an optimized search engine for all regulatory aspects. They immediately obtain all regulatory sources associated with this word. In addition, the context is provided, i.e. the other regulatory elements that refer to the subject.

Example of a search result for the keyword “virtual currency” (“monnaie virtuelle” in French):

4.2 – e-Reg Collaborative and Regulatory Project Management Services

Furthermore, e-Reg allows collaboration within a team, in a bank, a consultancy or law firms. Our tool offers the possibility to comment a regulatory text and share this information with a colleague. Our RegTech solution also facilitates the management of a regulatory change project by tracking statuses and responsibilities for tasks to be performed.

Example of a window for adding a comment:

RegTech, by definition, brings technology to regulatory topics which sometimes remains difficult to apprehend while finance is becoming more and more complex. By adopting tools of this type, the collaborators of the finance, legal, compliance or risk management departments of banks as well as lawyers and consulting firms gain in efficiency and relevance. You can requested a demonstration to better understand the benefits of e-Reg andhow it can simplify your work.

The Swiss financial industry is complex and made up of multiple layers of regulations. Laws, ordinances, FINMA circulars, and self-regulation are all important elements of the regulatory landscape in Switzerland for banks. Sometime additional documents need to be consulted such as messages, explanatory reports or consultations reports. It can be difficult to keep track of all these elements, making it essential to have access to an efficient search tool that makes navigating the Swiss Financial regulatory framework easier. Let’s take a look at why the ability to search in Swiss financial regulation is so important.

1 – Find quickly

One of the challenges facing financial professionals in Switzerland is navigating the vast amount of information available on financial regulations. This requires understanding the structure of Swiss law as well as keeping abreast of new developments in financial regulation from different regulatory sources. Without access to an efficient search tool, it can be difficult or even impossible for professionals to quickly find relevant information within Swiss financial regulation.

Using a search tool not only speeds up the process but also helps increase accuracy since searches will cover the relevant regulation and related legal documents (e.g. explanatory reports, consultation reports, …).

Additionally, a comprehensive search tool allows users to save time by searching for specific keywords or phrases related to their query without having to manually browse through multiple documents or websites. This makes finding information much faster and more convenient than ever before.

Searching through Swiss financial regulations using a comprehensive search tool allows users to easily browse different regulations instead of having to manually go through each regulation individually, saving valuable time and effort in the long run.

2 – Always up to date overview

As e-Reg is an online search tool, it is always up to date and thus you ensure that your searches are always performed on up-to-date documents. Future regulation is also available and shown next to the search results based on current regulation.

3 – Reduce error risk

Finally, e-Reg helps reduce risk by allowing users to perform more searches to ensure the correct understanding of applicable regulation.

Having access to an efficient search tool when working with Swiss financial regulation has many advantages for finance professionals working with Swiss regulation. Not only does it make locating pertinent information faster and more accurate but it also helps simplify processes while reducing risk associated with complying with current regulation and new developments.

4 – Conclusion

How much more could you achieve in one day, if you could search quickly and efficiently in the various layers of Swiss financial regulation?

This is why the RegTech easyReg created e-Reg, a web application that search efficiently in the Swiss Financial Regulation (and much more).