SFA
The Swiss Funds Association was established in 1992, and is the representative industry association of collective investment schemes and their managers in Switzerland. The SFA’s members include in particular all the major Swiss fund management companies, SICAV’s, and managers of collective investment schemes, as well as representatives of foreign collective investment schemes. These represent around 95% of the assets placed in collective investment schemes in Switzerland. Among the SFA’s members there are also numerous other service providers acrtive in the collective investment schemes sector.
The SFA is an active member of the EFAMA, the Brussels-based representative association for the European investment management industry, and is represented both on the EFAMA Board of Directors and on a number of different specialist committees.
Guiding principles
The SFA
* represents the interests of its members in Switzerland and abroad, and is committed to ensuring optimal frameworks for the production, asset management and distribution of collective investment schemes
* positions itself as an expert and representartive contact vis-à-vis the authorities, other associations, politicians, the media and the general public
* promotes the standing of the industry and helps maintain and bolster trust in collective investment schemes
* actively communicates the philosophy of fund investing
* takes a leading role with regard to self-regulation and provides its members with model documents
* is a streamlined organization with a clear management structure
The SFA’s strategy
Strategy of the Swiss Funds Association SFA (pdf)
Legal form
The SFA is an association as defined under Art. 60ff. of the Swiss Civil Code (CC). The rights and obligations of the members and the association’s bodies, as well as the purpose of the association, are regulated in the Articles of Association.
Articles of Association (pdf)
Internal organization
The internal organization is defined in the Organizational Regulations. These regulations cover in particular the competencies of the association’s bodies and form the basis for the smooth running of the association.
Organizational Regulations (pdf)
Organizational chart
The SFA has a streamlined organizational structure and a flat hierarchy. Instead of permanent specialist committees, the Board of Directors appoints ad hoc working groups to support the Executive Board in specifically defined tasks.
This structure ensures a high level of efficiency, which allows limited resources to be allocated strategically to find solutions to specific issues in the interests of the SFA’s members. This approach has proven to be very effective. (c) SFA