The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) issued an alert following an amendment by the Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research to Annex 2 of the Ordinance on Measures against the Democratic Republic of the Congo, updating the list of sanctioned persons, companies and organisations. The change was reflected in Switzerland’s SESAM sanctions database (SECO Sanctions Management) and takes effect at 23:00 on 13 January 2026. Financial intermediaries are required to implement the prohibitions under the ordinance, freeze the assets of sanctioned persons and report the affected business relationships to the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO). FINMA also highlighted that reporting to SECO does not remove the obligation to conduct additional checks in case of suspicions under Article 6 of the Anti-Money Laundering Act and, if doubts cannot be dispelled, to file a report without delay with the Money Laundering Reporting Office under Article 9.
Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) 2026-01-13
Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority alerts intermediaries to updated Democratic Republic of the Congo sanctions list and asset-freeze obligations
FINMA alerted updates to the sanctions list against the Democratic Republic of the Congo, effective 13 January 2026, requiring financial intermediaries to freeze assets and report to SECO. Reporting to SECO doesn't exempt entities from further checks under the Anti-Money Laundering Act and mandates immediate reporting to the Money Laundering Reporting Office if suspicions persist.