1 The custodian shall record its own and its account holders' securities separately.
2 If the custodian holds its own and its account holders' securities with a sub-custodian in Switzerland, it shall hold its own and its account holders' securities in separate securities accounts. Sub-custodians must offer custodians the possibility of holding their own and their account holders' securities in separate securities accounts.
3 If the securities are held abroad, the Swiss custodian and the first foreign sub-custodian shall agree that the latter will hold its own and the account holders' securities in separate accounts.
4 If an agreement in accordance with paragraph 3 is not possible under the law of the country concerned or for operational reasons, the Swiss custodian shall take other measures that provide the account holder with a comparable level of protection.
5 The Swiss custodian does not have to take measures in accordance with paragraph 4 if:
- a.
- owing to the characteristics of the relevant intermediated securities or the financial services relating to them, custody can take place only in the country concerned; or
- b.
- the account holder has instructed the custodian, in writing or in another form demonstrable by text, to hold the intermediated securities with a sub-custodian in that country.
6 The Swiss custodian that is holding its account holders' securities with a sub-custodian shall provide the account holders beforehand with information in hard copy or electronically and in a standardised manner. It shall state:
- a.
- that the securities will be held with a sub-custodian as a general rule;
- b.
- that, depending on the issuer, a sub-custodian may have its registered office abroad and that in this case the custody is subject to foreign law;
- c.
- that custody abroad carries risks for account holders, and what general risks are involved;
- d.
- the costs of the custody of intermediated securities.
34Inserted by Annex No 8 of the FA of 17 Dec. 2021 (Insolvency and Deposit Insurance), in force since 1 Jan. 2023 (AS 2022 732; BBl 2020 6359).