Swiss wealth-management firms have urged the government to postpone the planned
Oct. 1 launch of a new centralized corporate ownership transparency register,
citing data-security risks. The wealth management association requested a delay,
warning that consolidating ultimate beneficial owner information for more than
500,000 companies and other legal entities in one repository would be an
attractive target for cybercriminals. The register would be accessible only to
designated authorities and financial institutions subject to AML rules and would
not be public. The Swiss Bankers Association also raised cybersecurity and
data-protection concerns. The appeal follows a late-July breach of a comparable
Liechtenstein register in which unidentified hackers stole beneficial-ownership
records for about 31,000 companies, foundations and trusts; investigators have
not confirmed the attackers’ identity or motive.
