FINMA’s organisational structure

FINMA has a large degree of organisational autonomy and flexibility. The Financial Market Supervision Act defines the executive bodies of the supervisory authority (Board of Directors, Executive Board and auditor) and provides an outline of their central competencies. This Act explicitly requires, however, that the supervisory authority governs the respective details in a set of organisational regulations.

Division of competencies

The division of competencies between the Board of Directors and the Executive Board is governed in the organisational regulations. This should ensure that the division of responsibilities between the strategic and operational levels is clear and that the conditions are in place for the proper control mechanisms.
As a strategic body of FINMA, the Board of Directors is responsible for overall management and oversees and controls FINMA’s Executive Board. The competencies and obligations of the Board of Directors and its organisation (meetings, committees, quorum) are described in the organisational regulations. They also govern how the Board of Directors handles instances in which its members experience conflicts of interest (disclosure, obligation to abstain).

Control mechanisms

Through the internal audit unit and other controlling functions such as internal risk management (Enterprise Risk Management and Internal Control System), the Board of Directors monitors compliance with the organisational regulations and is able to uncover and arrange for the elimination of breaches.

Role of the Executive Board

The organisational regulations also define the position, function and composition of the Executive Board and FINMA’s organisation in the respective divisions. The Governance Regulations lay down the provisions governing organisation within FINMA including its divisions.