Financial dialogue between Switzerland and United Kingdom

Bern, 08.09.2020 - The fourth financial dialogue between Switzerland and the United Kingdom took place in Bern on 8 September 2020. The discussions between senior officials from the competent authorities focused on the joint statement signed by the finance ministers of the two states in June 2020, which aims to deepen bilateral cooperation in the area of financial services. The delegations also exchanged views on topics of shared interest.

The Swiss delegation was led by Stefan Flückiger, Deputy State Secretary for International Finance (SIF), while the United Kingdom's (UK) delegation was led by Katharine Braddick, Director General (Financial Services) of Her Majesty's Treasury. The representatives of both sides took note of the technical progress made since the signing of the joint statement. They agreed that the technical work should continue and that the next steps in the cooperation would be decided during a meeting to be held before the end of 2020. Other topics such as sustainable finance, the mutual recognition of stock markets and cooperation in multilateral fora were also addressed during this dialogue.

Switzerland has been pursuing the so-called "mind the gap" strategy in relation to the UK since 2016. The aim of this strategy is to maintain the reciprocal rights and obligations that exist between the two states and, where possible and appropriate, to develop the relationship further after the end of the UK's transition period vis-à-vis the European Union.

The joint communiqué on this financial dialogue is available in English as an enclosure.

Address for enquiries

Mario Tuor, Head of SIF Communications
Tel. 041 58 481 34 96, mario.tuor@sif.admin.ch