The entity
Company formation
The Swiss AG or GmbH your crypto venture needs first, with the substance a licence application rests on.
Company formationCrypto licence Switzerland
SRO, FINMA & what’s next
There is no single Swiss “crypto licence”. Most exchanges, brokers, wallets and payment businesses are financial intermediaries needing SRO membership; activities touching deposits, securities or funds need a full FINMA licence; and a new crypto-institution category is coming. We map the business to the right authorisation, form the Swiss entity and substance it rests on, and run the application, built to convert when the 2027 regime lands.
At a glance
The right authorisation, not the nearest-sounding one.
SRO for intermediaries, FINMA where the activity demands, mapped to your model.
- Most crypto businesses
- SRO membership (AMLA)
- Deposits / securities / funds
- Full FINMA licence
- Legal basis
- AMLA, FinIA, FinMIA, DLT Act
- Coming 2026–2027
- Crypto-institution licence (proposed)
- Needs
- Swiss entity + real substance
The essentials
What a Swiss crypto licence actually is
Switzerland has no standalone “crypto licence”. It regulates crypto through its existing financial-market laws, so the authorisation you need follows from what you do. The starting point for most businesses is membership of a self-regulatory organisation (SRO) — recognised by FINMA, in crypto usually the VQF in Zug — under the Anti-Money Laundering Act, the route for exchanges, brokers, custodial wallets and payment services acting as financial intermediaries. Cross into deposits, securities or collective investments and a full FINMA licence applies instead.
The three questions that decide the route
- Do you hold client assets in a way that creates a deposit claim? → banking / fintech territory.
- Do you issue or trade tokens that are securities? → securities and venue rules.
- Otherwise, are you a financial intermediary handling virtual assets? → SRO membership.
And a regime that is changing
A proposed FinIA revision would add a crypto-institution licence and a payment instrument licence, expected around 2026–2027, shifting many firms from SRO membership to direct FINMA supervision. The detail is in the classification and AML pages, and the financial-regulation practice.
The decision
SRO, FINMA, or the 2027 licence
The wrong starting assumption (that a crypto business “gets a licence”) wastes months. The route depends on the activity, and the map is changing. Here is how the options line up.
| Activity | Authorisation now | Under the FinIA reform |
|---|---|---|
| Exchange / broker / wallet | SRO membership (AMLA) | Crypto-institution licence (proposed) |
| Custody & staking | SRO + deposit-boundary analysis | Crypto-institution licence (proposed) |
| Stablecoin / payments | Deposit or fund analysis | Payment instrument licence (proposed) |
| Trading venue for tokens | DLT trading facility licence | Unchanged |
| Asset-token issuance | Securities law + ruling | Unchanged |
The table shows the shape; the right cell for you turns on the precise mechanics of how you hold assets and what your token does. We settle that in the mapping step — before any application — so the route is correct now and ready for the reform.
Not sure whether your model needs an SRO? Run the free 60-second check on our SRO membership page — it walks your activity through the anti-money-laundering perimeter and tells you whether affiliation is likely required.
In practice
Five businesses, five routes
The route follows from the mechanics, not the label a project gives itself. Five common models, and where each actually lands under the regime as of July 2026.
A spot exchange or brokerage
Matching buyers and sellers of crypto, or dealing as principal, is financial-intermediary activity under the Anti-Money Laundering Act. The route is SRO membership, with full KYC, monitoring and the Travel Rule. It stays SRO until the business starts holding client fiat in a way that creates a deposit claim, at which point the deposit-boundary question opens.
A custodial wallet with staking
Holding clients’ crypto and staking it engages two questions at once: the AML perimeter (SRO), and whether the way assets are held and rewards are passed on crosses into deposit-taking or collective investment. Segregation in bankruptcy under the DLT Act is the pivot. This is the model the proposed crypto-institution licence is designed for.
A stablecoin issuer
A redeemable token backed by fiat usually creates a claim that looks like a deposit, and can engage banking or fund rules depending on the reserve. SRO membership alone does not cover it. Today this is a deposit-or-fund analysis; under the reform it points at the payment instrument licence.
A tokenisation or trading venue
Running multilateral trading of tokenised securities is not an SRO matter at all. It needs a DLT trading facility licence, a full FINMA authorisation, and the issuance of asset tokens brings securities and prospectus law with it.
A non-custodial software provider
Pure software that never holds client assets or keys (an interface, a self-custody wallet) may fall outside financial-intermediary status entirely. The analysis turns on whether the provider ever has practical control of assets. Getting this conclusion documented, rather than assumed, is what protects the launch.
What goes wrong
Where projects get the route wrong
Most failed or delayed Swiss crypto launches trace back to the same handful of misreadings, settled cheaply at the mapping stage, expensive once an application is in.
- Treating SRO membership as a universal licence. It covers AML only. The first deposit, security or fund activity needs a different authorisation the SRO cannot grant.
- Assuming a Swiss authorisation reaches the EU. It does not passport under MiCA; serving regulated EU clients needs separate EU authorisation.
- Issuing a token before classifying it. An asset token is a security; finding that out after the token generation event invites a prospectus and securities problem that a prior ruling would have prevented.
- Building offshore and bolting Switzerland on top. The authorisation attaches to a Swiss entity with real substance; a thin or foreign structure undermines the application.
- Ignoring the 2027 shift. A launch structured only for today’s SRO route can need a rebuild when direct FINMA licensing arrives. We structure for the conversion now.
How it runs
From mapping to authorisation
The order is deliberate: classify the activity, build the entity and compliance to fit, then apply. Skipping the mapping is what produces rejected or mis-aimed applications.
- Stage 1
Regulatory mapping
Exactly what the business does, against each boundary (deposit, security, fund, venue) to fix the correct authorisation and any token classification needed.
- Stage 2
Entity & substance
The Swiss AG or GmbH, registered office and resident director, and the operating substance the authorisation rests on.
- Stage 3
Compliance build
The AML framework, KYC procedures, transaction monitoring, Travel Rule and the fit-and-proper file on the people involved.
- Stage 4
Application
The SRO membership or FINMA licence application, lodged and managed through queries to approval.
- Ongoing
Maintain & convert
The continuing compliance function, audits and reporting, and the structure positioned to convert into the 2027 category when it takes effect.
Budget
What it costs
The cost depends entirely on the route. SRO membership for a financial intermediary is materially lighter than a full FINMA licence, and a token issuance or trading venue is heavier still. The drivers are the compliance build, the substance, and which authorisation the activity triggers, not a flat fee. The indicative figures below frame the order of magnitude; we quote fixed against your actual model after the mapping step.
| Cost line | Indicative amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| SRO admission fee | from ~CHF 1,800 | VQF processing fee; other SROs comparable |
| SRO annual fee | from ~CHF 1,250 | Minimum; file- or turnover-based components on top |
| First-year all-in (SRO route) | CHF 50,000–150,000 | Entity, AML framework, first audit and advisory combined |
| Share capital | CHF 100,000 AG / CHF 20,000 GmbH | The company’s own equity, not a fee |
| Full FINMA licence | Materially higher | Prudential capital, heavier compliance, longer process |
The SRO fee itself is small; the real budget is the compliance build and substance behind it. The fee anchors above come from our SRO membership practice; where the activity needs a full FINMA authorisation instead, the cost and timeline step up accordingly. We scope and quote fixed against your model after the mapping step, so the budget reflects the route you genuinely need.
Discuss your model What you need
What an authorisation requires
Whatever the route, a Swiss crypto authorisation rests on real foundations:
- a Swiss entity (AG or GmbH) with a registered office and resident director;
- genuine operating substance in Switzerland, not an offshore shell;
- an AML framework: KYC, beneficial ownership, monitoring, Travel Rule;
- fit-and-proper people, evidenced, in the key roles;
- an audit function and the capacity to meet ongoing reporting duties.
SRO membership is not a magic “crypto licence”
Marketing across the industry sells “a Swiss crypto licence” as a single, quick product, usually meaning SRO membership. It is real and valuable, but it covers the anti-money-laundering perimeter only. It does not authorise deposit-taking, securities issuance, fund management or running a trading venue, and it does not passport into the EU. Building a business on the assumption that SRO membership covers everything is how projects hit a wall at their first regulated activity. We tell you what each route does and does not permit, before you commit to one.
Why Goldblum
How we run the authorisation
Crypto regulation is where company law, financial-market law and a shifting reform agenda meet. Mapping a real business across all three, and running the application, is the financial-regulation work we have done since 2014.
Mapping
The right route, first
The activity tested against every regulatory boundary before an application, so you pursue the authorisation the business actually triggers, not the nearest-sounding one.
One desk
Entity, substance and licence
The Swiss company, the substance and the regulatory application handled together, so the authorisation is not undermined by a thin structure beneath it.
Forward
Built for the 2027 regime
Today’s launch structured to convert into the crypto-institution or payment instrument category when the reform lands, rather than needing a rebuild.
Related
The pieces a launch turns on
Protocols & DAOs
DeFi & DAO structuring
Wrapping a protocol or DAO in a workable Swiss legal form (association, foundation or company) and resolving the regulatory and liability questions decentralised projects raise.
Explore this serviceFund managers
Crypto fund
Bringing a crypto or digital-asset fund to market: vehicle choice, the manager-of-collective-assets question, custody of fund assets, and distribution into Switzerland.
Explore this service FAQ
Swiss crypto licence: FAQ
01Is there a single 'crypto licence' in Switzerland?
No, and this is the first thing to get right. Switzerland regulates crypto under its existing financial-market laws, so what you need depends on what you do. Most crypto exchanges, brokers, wallet providers and payment businesses act as financial intermediaries and need membership of a self-regulatory organisation (SRO) under the Anti-Money Laundering Act. Activities that touch deposits, securities or collective investments need a full FINMA licence instead. There is no one-size 'crypto licence'; there is the correct authorisation for your specific model, and that is what we identify first.
02What is SRO membership and who needs it?
An SRO is a FINMA-recognised body that monitors anti-money-laundering compliance; in the crypto sector the main one is the VQF (Verein zur Qualitätssicherung von Finanzdienstleistungen) in Zug. A crypto business that exchanges, transfers or holds virtual assets for clients generally qualifies as a financial intermediary and must either join an SRO or, in limited cases, be directly supervised by FINMA. For most exchanges, brokers and custodial wallet providers, SRO membership is the route to a compliant launch, faster and lighter than a banking or securities licence, while still imposing real KYC, monitoring and reporting duties.
03When do I need a full FINMA licence instead of SRO membership?
When the activity crosses into a regulated financial service. Taking client crypto in a way that creates a deposit claim can require a banking or FinTech licence (the FinTech licence, under Art. 1b of the Banking Act, caps public deposits at CHF 100 million, held uninvested and interest-free); issuing or trading asset tokens engages securities law; running a fund touches collective-investment rules; operating a trading venue for tokenised securities needs a DLT trading facility licence. SRO membership covers the anti-money-laundering perimeter, not these. We map the business against each boundary so you apply for the authorisation the activity actually triggers, not the one that sounds closest.
04What is the crypto-institution licence arriving in 2027?
It is a proposed new FINMA licence category. In October 2025 the Federal Council opened a consultation on revising the Financial Institutions Act to add two categories: a payment instrument institution licence (aimed at stablecoins and payments) and a crypto-institution licence (for custody, including staking, and client trading of crypto assets). The reform is expected to take effect around 2026–2027, with a transition period. Significantly, it would make direct FINMA licensing, rather than SRO membership, the route for many crypto firms. As of July 2026 the framework is proposed, not yet in force, so current launches still build on the existing regime, but we structure them to convert cleanly when it lands.
05How long does it take to get SRO membership?
Typically a few months from a complete application, driven less by the SRO's processing time than by how ready the business is: its AML framework, KYC procedures, monitoring tooling, the fit-and-proper evidence on the people involved, and a Swiss operating substance. A full FINMA licence takes considerably longer. The realistic timeline is set by the compliance build, which is why we start it early and in parallel with the company formation rather than after.
06Do I need a Swiss company to get a crypto authorisation?
In practice, yes. SRO membership and FINMA licences attach to a Swiss entity with real substance here: a Swiss AG or GmbH, a registered office, and a resident director or officer. A foreign company cannot 'get a Swiss crypto licence' without a Swiss presence. We form the entity and build the substance as the foundation the authorisation rests on, so the regulatory application is not undermined by a thin or offshore structure.
07Does SRO membership let me serve clients across the EU?
No. A Swiss authorisation is a Swiss authorisation; it does not passport into the EU the way an EU MiCA licence does across member states. A Swiss-regulated crypto business can serve Swiss and many international clients, but offering regulated services into the EU generally needs separate EU authorisation. We are candid about this at the outset: Switzerland is an excellent base for a global or Swiss-focused business, but it is not a back door into the EU single market.
08What ongoing obligations come with a Swiss crypto authorisation?
The authorisation is the start, not the finish. An SRO member must run continuous KYC and beneficial-ownership checks, monitor transactions, apply the Travel Rule, report suspicions to the Money Laundering Reporting Office (MROS), maintain an audit function and submit to periodic SRO audits. A FINMA-licensed institution carries heavier prudential and reporting duties. We build the ongoing compliance function (in-house or outsourced) so the authorisation is maintained, not just obtained.
09Can a token issuer launch on SRO membership alone?
It depends on the token. A pure payment-token issuance engages anti-money-laundering rules, where SRO membership is relevant; but an asset token is treated as a security, which brings prospectus and securities-law obligations that SRO membership does not address, and a utility token's treatment turns on its features at issuance. The right first step for an issuer is a FINMA token classification ruling, which settles the category before the token generation event and tells you which authorisations actually apply.
10Why launch a crypto business in Switzerland rather than elsewhere?
Switzerland offers a mature, principle-based regime that has regulated crypto since the 2018 token taxonomy and the 2021 DLT Act, a regulator that has authorised real digital-asset infrastructure, legal certainty on the segregation of crypto assets in bankruptcy, and a credible jurisdiction that banks and counterparties respect. The trade-off is that it is rigorous, not light-touch: the bar for substance and compliance is real. For a serious project, that rigour is the value; for a project looking to cut corners, it is the wrong jurisdiction.
11What does Goldblum do on a crypto authorisation?
We start with the regulatory mapping (what the business actually does and which authorisation that triggers) then form the Swiss entity and substance, build the AML and compliance framework, and run the SRO membership or FINMA application through to approval. Because the regime is shifting towards direct FINMA licensing, we structure today's launch so it converts cleanly into the crypto-institution or payment instrument category when the reform takes effect, rather than needing a rebuild.
The client's stories
What clients say
Rated 5.0 / 5 from 38 reviews on Google. Read them on Google →
“Perfekter Service! Wir wollten eine AG in der Schweiz übernehmen und hatten kaum Zeit – innerhalb weniger Tage war alles organisiert, inklusive Notar, Handelsregister und Bank.”
“We consulted Goldblum and Partners for structuring our crypto project under Swiss law. Their team was clear about the threshold between non-custodial and financial-intermediary status.”
“Équipe sérieuse. La documentation AML fournie était claire et adaptée à notre activité crypto. Je recommande.”
“Professionisti veri. Conoscono bene la legge svizzera e si sono occupati di ogni aspetto del passaggio azionario.”
Launching a crypto business in Switzerland?
Tell us what the business will do. A partner maps it to the right authorisation (SRO or FINMA), forms the entity and substance, and runs the application, with the coming 2027 categories built into the plan.
