Zurich — Dec. 20, 2025. Swiss markets are paused for the weekend, but the Swiss Exchange story is still moving. The most recent session (Friday, Dec. 19) left the Swiss Market Index (SMI) hovering just shy of the 13,200 area, while the market digested a busy December mix of exchange milestones (turnover and ETF listings), big regulatory plumbing news (Europe’s consolidated tape decision), and a macro backdrop defined by a zero-rate Swiss National Bank and softer—but still positive—growth forecasts for 2026. [1]
At the center sits SIX Swiss Exchange, the core trading venue in Switzerland and part of the broader SIX Group. Over recent weeks, SIX has highlighted record-like activity in cash equities and ETFs, while also navigating a highly visible accounting hit tied to its Worldline stake—an issue that affects SIX Group results but not the day-to-day functioning of the Swiss equity market. [2]
Swiss Market Snapshot: Where the SMI Stands Going Into the Weekend
The Swiss benchmark ended Friday, Dec. 19, modestly higher, after spending much of the session in negative territory before a late push lifted the close. Market data services put the SMI around 13,172 points at the end of the session. [3]
Zooming out, Switzerland’s blue-chip index has spent much of late 2025 trending upward, with third-party index summaries placing the 52-week range roughly between 10,700 and 13,199, and a 12‑month gain in the mid-teens. (As always, different data vendors may show slightly different calculations depending on timing, methodology, and whether dividends are included.) [4]
For global readers who use Switzerland as a “quality factor” proxy: the SMI is built from the 20 largest and most liquid Swiss equities (selected from the broader Swiss Performance Index universe) and covers about 75% of Swiss equity market capitalization, with index weight caps designed to avoid extreme concentration. [5]
Trading and Listings: SIX Turns Over CHF 1 Trillion (and ETFs Keep Flexing)
A key reason the Swiss market has stayed so visible in Europe this year is simple: activity.
In its November 2025 exchange figures release (published Dec. 1), SIX reported that equities trading turnover on SIX Swiss Exchange surpassed the full-year 2024 total on Nov. 11, finishing November with CHF 809.4 billion in equities turnover since the start of 2025 on SIX Swiss Exchange. On the Swiss market “as a whole,” SIX said turnover grew by CHF 86.6 billion in November to reach CHF 1,049.4 billion year-to-date, a 13.2% increase versus January–November 2024. [6]
The loudest growth engine inside that headline: ETFs. SIX said the ETF segment posted the strongest year-to-date rise in November, up 54.4%. [7]
Price performance and volume often travel together. SIX also noted the SMI rose 4.9% in November to 12,834, contributing to a 10.6% increase year-to-date (through November)—a reminder that 2025 has been more than just “defensive Switzerland grinding sideways.” [8]
ETFs on the Swiss Exchange: Active Products Go Mainstream
SIX’s ETF market has been expanding not just in size, but in type.
On Dec. 3, 2025, SIX announced that Columbia Threadneedle Investments joined SIX Swiss Exchange as a new ETF issuer, listing two actively managed, multi-currency equity ETFs—one focused on Europe (referencing MSCI Europe) and one on the U.S. (referencing the Russell 1000), each designed to keep at least 80% of assets in its core universe. The products are tradable in CHF alongside their base trading currencies, and SIX named Virtu Financial Ireland as market maker in the release. [9]
The bigger signal is the trendline: SIX said that with this launch it now hosts 35 ETF issuers with about 2,100 ETFs available, and that 298 new ETFs had been listed so far in 2025—including 111 actively managed products, the highest number of new active ETF listings in eight years. [10]
That’s not just a product-stat brag. It’s a market-structure shift. Europe’s ETF landscape has historically leaned heavily toward passive index replication; Switzerland’s venue is positioning itself as a place where active management “in an ETF wrapper” is becoming normal rather than exotic. [11]
Retail Investors and the SME Visibility Problem: SIX Launches a Research Hub
SIX is also pushing into a quieter, but important, issue: research coverage—especially for smaller listed companies.
On Dec. 8, 2025, SIX Swiss Exchange described the launch of its SIX Research Hub, aimed at connecting retail investors with research on listed SMEs (small and mid-sized companies) that have free-float market capitalization below CHF 1 billion. The model relies on independent packages from two sell-side research providers (Edison Investment Research and Octavian), including initiation coverage and ongoing updates, with reports made available on the platform and distributed through provider channels. [12]
This is partly a response to Europe’s post‑MiFID II environment, where the “unbundling” of research from trading commissions has contributed to reduced coverage for smaller issuers—an ongoing structural debate across European equities. [13]
That SME focus also connects to SIX Group’s broader ambitions. In late November, Reuters reported that SIX Group has been weighing a potential pan‑European SME-focused equity exchange and evaluating acquisitions—early-stage thinking, but directionally consistent with initiatives like Sparks and the Research Hub. [14]
The Big Regulatory Plumbing Story: ESMA Picks EuroCTP for the EU Equity Tape
The most consequential “market infrastructure” headline this week didn’t come from Zurich—it came from Paris.
On Dec. 19, 2025, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) announced it had selected EuroCTP to become the first Consolidated Tape Provider (CTP) for shares and ETFs in the European Union. ESMA framed the decision as a milestone for transparency, saying the tape should provide a consolidated view of market activity for retail and institutional investors across Europe. [15]
Two details matter for Swiss Exchange watchers:
- EuroCTP is a joint venture with 15 European exchange groups as shareholders, ESMA said—this shareholder group includes Switzerland’s SIX (even though Switzerland is outside the EU). [16]
- ESMA said it is inviting EuroCTP to apply for authorisation “without delay,” and that after authorisation it would operate the tape for five years under ESMA’s direct supervision. [17]
Trade press reporting indicates EuroCTP is working toward a July 2026 launch, subject to authorisation timelines. [18]
Why this matters in practice: consolidated tapes reduce fragmentation by creating a single, standardized feed of trades and quotes across venues. For firms trading EU equities and ETFs—especially asset managers and brokers—better consolidated data can reshape best execution, routing, and cost transparency. Switzerland’s buy-side ecosystem is heavily plugged into EU markets, so SIX’s involvement is strategically meaningful even beyond Swiss-listed instruments. [19]
Post-Trade Is Also Speeding Up: Switzerland and Liechtenstein Target T+1 in 2027
The “plumbing upgrades” theme doesn’t stop at data.
A December market-structure update highlighted preparations for a move to a T+1 settlement cycle (trade date plus one day) in Switzerland and Liechtenstein, coordinated with the EU and UK for a joint migration. The target date cited is Oct. 11, 2027, with SIX participating via task forces and aligning implementation through its central securities depository, SIX SIS. [20]
The stated rationale echoes the global trend: faster settlement aims to reduce counterparty exposure, improve liquidity efficiency, and strengthen resilience—especially relevant in a world where volatility can spike faster than operational processes used to. [21]
SIX Group’s Corporate Cloud: Worldline Impairment Drives Expected 2025 Net Loss
While the exchange’s trading metrics look robust, the listed-market operator’s parent group has had to manage a less cheerful headline.
On Nov. 6, 2025, SIX said it expected its 2025 group net result to be negative (around CHF -300 million) due to Worldline-related, non-cash accounting effects totaling roughly CHF -550 million. SIX reiterated it would not participate in Worldline’s announced capital increase (accepting dilution) and would manage the stake as a financial investment going forward. [22]
SIX simultaneously emphasized that—outside the Worldline effects—its operating business was trending positively, projecting mid-single-digit revenue growth and strong EBITDA growth for full-year 2025, and expecting to propose a stable dividend compared to the CHF 5.30 per share paid for 2024. [23]
There was also a strategically relevant operational detail buried in the release: SIX said it agreed to acquire Worldline’s electronic data management business (ex‑CETREL Securities), intended to strengthen SIX’s position in sanctioned securities monitoring—with closing expected in H1 2026, subject to approvals. [24]
Macro Backdrop: SNB Holds at 0%, Growth Forecasts Cool, Tariff Relief Helps (A Bit)
Swiss equities are never just about Swiss companies; they’re also about Swiss macro stability and the franc.
On Dec. 11, 2025, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) left its policy rate unchanged at 0%, reiterated its willingness to be active in FX markets as needed, and noted that inflation had dipped to 0.0% in November. The SNB’s conditional forecast put average inflation at 0.2% (2025), 0.3% (2026), and 0.6% (2027), while expecting Swiss GDP growth of just under 1.5% in 2025 and around 1% in 2026. [25]
Economists broadly echo the “slower next year” theme. In its Winter 2025 forecast published Dec. 15, ETH Zurich’s KOF Institute projected Swiss real GDP growth of 1.4% in 2025 (adjusted for major sporting events), slowing to 1.1% in 2026, before improving to 1.7% in 2027. KOF said easing trade policy tensions helped, pointing to a reduction in U.S. tariffs on Swiss exports from 39% to 15%, while emphasizing that uncertainty remains because the understanding is not yet a legally binding agreement. [26]
A Reuters report the same day said Switzerland’s government panel of economic experts also expects 1.1% growth in 2026 (up from a prior estimate), likewise referencing the tariff reduction, while warning that global trade-policy uncertainty remains elevated and the Swiss franc remains highly valued. [27]
For the Swiss Exchange, this matters because the SMI is heavy with global exporters and multinationals—pharma, consumer staples, industrials—whose earnings translation and competitiveness can be sensitive to CHF moves, even when their underlying businesses are worldwide. [28]
UBS Capital Rules: A Major Swing Factor for Swiss Financials (and the Index)
A second Switzerland-specific driver that investors keep circling: UBS regulation.
In mid-December, Reuters reported Swiss lawmakers pitched a compromise on capital rules that would allow UBS to use up to 50% Additional Tier 1 (AT1) debt for part of a requirement the government had proposed to be met with common equity (CET1). The same report noted a proposed cap on investment banking activity at 30% of risk-weighted assets, and said UBS shares hit a 17-year high on the development. [29]
On Dec. 19, Reuters separately reported that the Canton of Zurich urged the federal government to soften the plan, warning the measures could be stricter than international standards and might hurt competitiveness, tax revenue, and jobs—underscoring that this debate is also about Switzerland’s positioning as a financial center, not just one bank’s balance sheet. [30]
Because UBS is a heavyweight SMI component, regulatory outcomes can ripple into the index through bank valuation, buybacks, and risk appetite—especially if the market starts pricing a multi-year drag on capital returns or, conversely, a clearing of uncertainty. [31]
2026 Forecasts and Market Outlook: Cautious Optimism, with Swiss-Specific Risks
Looking ahead, forecasts for Swiss equities into 2026 read like “optimistic, but Switzerland-flavored.”
A UBS Switzerland investment outlook document states that equity prices could rise around 5% in 2026, referencing the SMI. [32]
Swiss asset managers are also publishing year-ahead views that lean constructive but not euphoric. Vontobel’s December outlook characterized 2025 as volatile and framed 2026 with cautious optimism for Swiss equities amid global uncertainties. [33]
Across these outlooks, a few themes keep repeating (and they’re worth tracking because they line up with the Swiss market’s structure):
- Rates and inflation staying low in Switzerland can support equity valuations—especially for quality compounders—while also affecting financials differently than markets with higher nominal yields. [34]
- The franc’s strength remains the evergreen risk to exporters’ competitiveness and earnings translation, and both KOF and the government flagged CHF valuation as part of the risk backdrop. [35]
- Corporate action is a tailwind: Switzerland has seen a surge in dealmaking in 2025, which can feed into sector reshaping, cross-border capital flows, and new strategic narratives for large index names. [36]
Bottom Line for the Swiss Exchange on Dec. 20, 2025
As of today (Dec. 20), the Swiss Exchange narrative has three layers:
- Market performance: the SMI remains near the upper end of its annual range, ending the last session just under 13,200. [37]
- Exchange fundamentals: turnover milestones and ETF growth show Switzerland’s venue is benefiting from both investor demand and product innovation, with active ETFs becoming a standout theme. [38]
- Infrastructure and policy: Europe’s consolidated tape decision (with SIX connected via EuroCTP) and the long runway toward T+1 settlement are reminders that the next era of equity markets will be shaped as much by data and post-trade rules as by earnings. [39]
Meanwhile, the 2026 outlook is constructive in many forecasts—but Switzerland’s specific “known unknowns” (CHF strength, global growth, and UBS’s regulatory endpoint) remain the levers most likely to shift sentiment quickly. [40]
References
1. www.nasdaq.com, 2. www.six-group.com, 3. www.nasdaq.com, 4. www.investing.com, 5. www.six-group.com, 6. www.six-group.com, 7. www.six-group.com, 8. www.six-group.com, 9. www.six-group.com, 10. www.six-group.com, 11. www.six-group.com, 12. www.six-group.com, 13. www.six-group.com, 14. www.reuters.com, 15. www.esma.europa.eu, 16. www.esma.europa.eu, 17. www.esma.europa.eu, 18. www.fnlondon.com, 19. www.esma.europa.eu, 20. www.marketsmedia.com, 21. www.marketsmedia.com, 22. www.six-group.com, 23. www.six-group.com, 24. www.six-group.com, 25. www.snb.ch, 26. kof.ethz.ch, 27. www.reuters.com, 28. www.six-group.com, 29. www.reuters.com, 30. www.reuters.com, 31. www.reuters.com, 32. www.ubs.com, 33. am.vontobel.com, 34. www.snb.ch, 35. kof.ethz.ch, 36. www.ft.com, 37. tradingeconomics.com, 38. www.six-group.com, 39. www.esma.europa.eu, 40. www.snb.ch
