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The
cabinet asked the finance ministry to draft specific proposals
by mid-2023 that could increase transparency by making it easier
to identify corporate owners.
The move aims "to strengthen the prevention and prosecution of
financial crime and thus the integrity and reputation of
(Switzerland as a) financial centre and business location", it
said in a statement.
Switzerland, whose banks make it the world's biggest manager of
offshore wealth, has long sought to fight its old image as a
place for criminals to stash ill-gotten gains. It routinely
exchanges bank account information with over 100 countries.
But it has faced international pressure to shed more light onto
the shadowy world of corporate ownership, where many companies
cloak the identity of the real beneficiaries.
The goal was to create a central register for identifying owners
and updating information about actual beneficiaries.
"The register should be accessible to relevant authorities, but
not to the public. The aim is to find a solution that is as
effective and efficient as possible," it said in a statement.
It asked the finance ministry to also consider steps to tighten
anti-money-laundering rules, for example by widening their scope
to include the legal professions, it said.
Parliament has in the past rejected the idea of subjecting
lawyers and financial advisers to the same rules that banks face
on reporting suspicious transactions.
(Reporting by Michael Shields; Editing by Bernadette Baum)
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