The case in comparative light

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Switzerland has had its own formative cases, from the Abacha and Montesinos funds to 1MDB and Petrobras, and has reacted in each instance with a tightening of due-diligence rules, the most recent being the 2024–2026 reform that Part F, Chapter VI describes. The Singapore response differed in two respects that matter for a cross-border practice. It was faster: the arrests were in August 2023, the legislation was passed in August 2024 and the supervisory penalties followed in July 2025, a cycle of under two years. And it reached beyond the financial sector into the gatekeepers, the immigration system and the tax-incentive regime at the same time, on the view that laundering is a system failure that a single sector cannot fix. For a group operating in both hubs, the practical consequence is that the Singapore standard on source of wealth, document authentication and exit execution is now at least as demanding as the Swiss one and in some respects more so. Chapter VIII draws the conclusion for the design of a group programme.

For general information only. This article does not constitute legal or tax advice, does not replace advice on an individual case and creates no lawyer-client relationship. It reflects the legal position as of October 2026.

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Dr Alexander Ressos, TEP

Of Counsel, KGP Legal LLC

I am Of Counsel with KGP Legal LLC in Singapore, where I work with a global client base of successful entrepreneurs and their families, independent asset managers, commodity trading houses and other commercial clients. I am a German and Swiss attorney-at-law, also admitted as a solicitor in England & Wales and in Hong Kong. I divide my time between Zug in Switzerland, Singapore and Hong Kong. Since 2017 I have advised international clients on more than 700 crypto and digital asset projects. I also have extensive experience in cross-border litigation and arbitration in Singapore, Hong Kong and other markets in South-East Asia and Greater China.

I operate across the key financial centres in South-East Asia, the Middle East and Switzerland, with a particular focus on asset protection, international tax and estate planning, as well as trusts, company administration and other fiduciary services. My philosophy is to serve as a trusted advisor working closely with my clients and to help them achieve their commercial objectives.

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SingaporeIQ is edited by Dr Alexander Ressos, an international business lawyer with more than 15 years of local experience in Singapore as a permanent resident, a Singapore registered foreign lawyer and managing partner of a Singapore foreign law practice. In addition to significant experience in cross-border investments and transactions, UHNWI private client work and sanctions/export controls, Dr Ressos has extensive experience in cross-border business and in crypto and digital-asset projects in Singapore, drawn from more than 700 projects since 2017.

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