The Board of Directors of the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) has appointed Alain Girard as the new Head of its Banks division, with effect from 1 April 2026. Girard, currently Head of the Recovery and Resolution division and a member of FINMA’s Executive Board, succeeds Thomas Hirschi, who left FINMA on 31 August 2025, after which Simon Brönnimann led the Banks division on an interim basis. Girard has led FINMA’s Recovery and Resolution division since 2022 and was part of the crisis unit handling the Credit Suisse crisis; he also represents FINMA in the Financial Stability Board’s Resolution Steering Group and is a member of the High-Level Task Force for Bail-in Execution. From 2019 to 2022, he headed Supervision of Small Banks and Securities Firms within the Banks division and worked on regulatory projects including the introduction of the small banks regime. Brönnimann will gradually hand over the Banks division’s items of business and then assume interim leadership of the Recovery and Resolution division; he joined FINMA in 2007 and has held management roles across large and small bank supervision.
Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) 2026-02-18
Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority appoints Alain Girard as Head of Banks division effective 1 April 2026
The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) has appointed Alain Girard as the new Head of its Banks division, effective 1 April 2026. Girard, currently leading the Recovery and Resolution division, succeeds Thomas Hirschi and has been involved in key regulatory projects and crisis management. Simon Brönnimann, who served as interim head, will transition to interim leadership of the Recovery and Resolution division.