Daily · Swiss Sanctions & US Options Rules · August 17, 2026

New Swiss Sanctions Lists

FINMA has updated the list of sanctioned natural persons, companies, and organizations associated with ISIL (Da'esh) and Al-Kaida. Simultaneously, the regulator published amendments to Annexes 2 and 14a of the Ordinance of 4 March 2022 on measures in connection with the situation in Ukraine, affecting the entities and persons listed within those specific annexes.

For businesses operating in Switzerland or managing Swiss assets, these updates necessitate an immediate refresh of internal compliance screening lists. Because these changes are effective as of today, failing to identify a newly listed person or entity during onboarding or transaction monitoring could result in severe regulatory penalties or the freezing of funds. Our read: Switzerland continues to tighten its alignment with international sanctions regimes to prevent the circumvention of financial restrictions.

Refining US Options Trading

In the United States, the SEC is adjusting the technical frameworks governing options markets. The regulator has issued a final order approving a rule change for Nasdaq ISE, LLC to amend the Short Term Option Series Program specifically regarding Qualifying Securities. This change alters the criteria for which securities can be included in these short-term programs, which may impact the availability of hedging instruments for fund managers and traders.

Additionally, the Options Clearing Corporation has proposed a new procedures-based approach to determine product eligibility for overnight or extended trading sessions, utilizing the existing ETH Risk Management Framework. This proposal aims to standardize how the clearinghouse decides if a product can be traded outside of standard hours, potentially reducing the administrative lag for launching new extended-trading products. Our read: These updates suggest a regulatory push toward more automated and flexible eligibility criteria to accommodate 24-hour global trading demands.

This overview is informational, not legal or compliance advice. Consult your lawyer or compliance specialist on specific decisions.

Sources

This overview is based on official regulator publications for the period:

CH (4)

EU (1)

UK (8)

US (17)