Financial intermediary
Person or entity that professionally accepts, holds, transfers or manages assets, triggering Swiss AML and sometimes licensing duties.
A financial intermediary is a person or business that participates professionally in financial transactions, for example by accepting or holding assets, transferring funds, managing assets or providing payment services. In Switzerland the term is central to anti-money laundering regulation and may overlap with licensing regimes for banks, securities firms, asset managers, trustees or fintech providers. Classification depends on the actual activity, professional nature and exemptions. Consequences include client identification, beneficial-owner checks, transaction monitoring, documentation, reporting of suspicions and supervision by a regulator or self-regulatory organisation.