The Federal Council has appointed Katia Villard to the Board of Directors of the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority FINMA. A professor of criminal law, Ms Villard will succeed Ursula Cassani Bossy who is stepping down from FINMA's Board of Directors at the end of the year.
At its meeting today, the Federal Council appointed Katia Villard as a new member of FINMA's Board of Directors. She will take up her mandate on 1 January 2026 for the remainder of the board's term of office, which runs until the end of 2027. Ursula Cassani Bossy is stepping down on 31 December 2025 after six years on the board. She announced her intention to step down in the middle of the current term at the time of her re-election in 2023.
The Chair of FINMA’s Board of Directors, Marlene Amstad, commented: "I am delighted that Katia Villard, a professor of criminal law with wide-ranging expertise in commercial criminal law, anti-money laundering and banking and financial market law is joining us. Ursula Cassani Bossy enriched the Board of Directors with her deep expertise and many years of experience. I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to her for her important contribution to the board's work."
Katia Villard studied law at the University of Geneva and was admitted to the bar of Canton Geneva in 2011. She obtained her doctorate at the same university in 2017. Professor Villard's academic career has focused on commercial criminal law, combating money laundering and corruption, and banking and financial market law. After undertaking research at the Max Planck Institute and Queen Mary University of London, she has been associate professor of criminal law at the University of Geneva's Faculty of Law since 2022 as well as head of the university's Centre for Banking and Financial Market Law since 2023.
FINMA’s Board of Directors will accordingly comprise the following eight members with effect from 1 January 2026 (term of office from 2024 until 2027):
- Professor Marlene Amstad (Chair)
- Martin Suter (Vice-Chair)
- Professor Katia Villard
- Professor Aline Darbellay
- Dr Alberto Franceschetti
- Benjamin Gentsch
- Marzio Hug
- Dr Andreas Schlatter
The Board of Directors is the strategic management body of FINMA. It comprises seven to nine members. According to the Financial Market Supervision Act, it notably determines the strategic objectives of FINMA and submits them to the Federal Council for approval. It also decides on matters of substantial importance and issues circulars and the ordinances delegated to FINMA. The Board of Directors appoints the Chief Executive Officer, subject to approval by the Federal Council.
