On 4 September 2013, the Federal Council decided to appoint a broad-based group of experts to analyse the financial centre's prevailing environment and prospects for the future, and derive recommendations for action. Aside from the chairman, Professor Aymo Brunetti, the Federal Council had also nominated Professor Susan Emmenegger as a member of the group of experts as a representative of academia. The FDF was empowered to confirm the members of the group of experts as soon as the authorities and private sector had appointed their representatives.

The composition of the group of experts is as follows:

Chairman

Aymo Brunetti, Professor, Department of Economics, University of Bern

Representative of academia

Susan Emmenegger, Professor, Institute for Banking Law, University of Bern

Representatives of the private sector

Patrick Odier, Chairman of the Swiss Bankers Association and Managing Partner of Lombard Odier & Cie

Urs Rohner, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Credit Suisse Group AG (deputy: Axel Weber, Chairman of the Board of Directors of UBS AG)

Beat Oberlin, Chairman of the Executive Board of Basellandschaftliche Kantonalbank

Urs Berger, Chairman of the Swiss Insurance Association and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Mobiliar Holding AG

Martin Senn, CEO Zurich Insurance Group Ltd.

Martin Neese, Chairman of Forum SRO

Michel Demaré, Chairman of SwissHoldings

Henrique Schneider, Swiss Union of Crafts and Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises

Representatives of the authorities

Jean-Pierre Danthine, Vice Chairman of the SNB Governing Board

Mark Branson, Member of the FINMA Executive Board

Susanne Kuster, Vice Director, Federal Office of Justice

Jürg Lindenmann, Deputy Director, Directorate of Public International Law

Eric Scheidegger, Deputy Director, SECO

Jacques de Watteville, State Secretary, State Secretariat for International Financial Matters SIF

Adrian Hug, Director, Federal Tax Administration

Daniel Roth, Head of FDF Legal Services

Isolated from daily business, the group of experts is to address the financial centre's challenges within Switzerland as well as its opportunities abroad based on the existing principles for financial market policy. Its work will have to take account of the interests of the entire Swiss economy. The focus will be on the following areas:

Strengthening the competitiveness of Switzerland's financial centre by improving the domestic framework; this should also support the structural change in the financial sector and real economy in the best possible manner
Preserving or improving market access abroad with a view to maintaining and promoting the added value of activities with an international outlook in Switzerland

The mandate of the group of experts is for a limited period up to the end of 2014. The group of experts can listen to other experts if need be.

Members of group of experts for further development of financial market strategy appointed