A lot has happened in Swiss and global finance since the last Point Zero Forum which opens its second edition today. Daniela Stoffel, head of the Swiss State Secretariat for International Finance spoke to finews.asia about recent events. 

Members from the financial community's private and public sectors will be meeting in The Circle at Zurich’s airport starting today to exchange experiences and discuss initiatives around fintech regulation and innovation at this year's Point Zero Forum.

Rapid Disruptive Effects

The three-day conference, co-founded by The Swiss State Secretariat for International Finance (SIF) and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), has artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain high on its list of discussion items. The SIF has dedicated teams to these technologies who will be running panels on the topics throughout.

Currently «the absolute rapid disruptive effects» of AI make it indispensable in any discussion around technological innovation, State Secretary Daniela Stoffel said in an interview with finews.asia. While there is a broad range of aspects already being addressed at the EU level, she doesn’t yet see any «financial services specific issues,» related to the technology at the moment.

A Grass Roots Affair

In the case of blockchain, its infrastructure still needs to prove that it's useful to financial markets given all the hype. It's vital «the technology comes to fruition sooner rather than later. After all the speculation, we need to hear about the real use cases,» she said.

(Image: SIF)

The SIF with its nearly 100 employees is using the Forum to introduce Eva Selamlar (image above), as the new leader of its Financial Innovation Desk (FIND) scheduled for launch next quarter.

Although many organizations provide services to fintech, Find aims to «connect the needs between different companies and define the gaps,» be they related to a business model or to understanding Finma regulation. Academia is involved, Stoffel said.

The way Swiss authorities generally go about making rules for fintechs and innovation is very much «a grassroots affair,» and for Stoffel, it's «essential for regulators to be in the loop when innovation is happening.»

Credit Suisse Takeover

When faced with innovation, typical questions the State asks are: «Is it a game changer? Can it be summarized under existing provisions or are there new risks?»

Besides the current difficult geopolitical issues, society having to adapt to new technology is one of the most demanding factors, she added. 

«Some of these problems such as financial stability are old ones being channeled and aggravated through new technologies such as the mobility of money through e-banking and social media,» she said referring to Credit Suisse’s recent bank run.

Overall, Switzerland rose to the occasion in dealing with the crisis. «The swiftness, the efficiency with which the situation was resolved being very much appreciated internationally,» Stoffel said, adding that she had not heard otherwise.

Now that Switzerland had done its part, «the focus is very much at the international level involving the Financial Stability Board, of which Switzerland is a member,» she said.

Sustainable-Technology

Understanding technology is critical for authorities working on sustainable finance goals. Progress depends on the transparency, quality, and accessibility of data, and «we are convinced that the two tangents of technology and sustainability need to be married,» she said.

With Switzerland having a more restrictive approach to other jurisdictions when dealing with personal data, Stoffel sees the way such data is managed as a challenge for institutions in Switzerland where banks will have to reconcile client trust with data use.

«As a client, you trust your bank, but your bank also has a huge interest in your personal information. As a bank, how can you be a trust center and at the same time, use that data to improve your services?» Stoffel asked.