Switzerland presses ahead with transparency register after Liechtenstein hack

By Emma Farge

GENEVA, Aug 31 (Reuters) - Switzerland said on Monday it will go ahead with plans to publish a corporate transparency registry in October, despite calls from an industry group to reconsider based on fears of a cyber attack like one in neighbouring Liechtenstein last month.

Hackers illegally accessed and ​copied data from Liechtenstein's register of beneficial owners during the night of July 29-30, ‌compromising information relating to about 31,000 companies, foundations and trusts, the principality's government said earlier this month.

"Should an incident similar to the one in Liechtenstein occur in Switzerland, it would cause immeasurable reputational damage to the Swiss financial and business centre, quite apart from the serious legal consequences that would follow," the Swiss Association of Wealth Managers said in a letter to the Swiss Justice Ministry dated August 24.

Such a register would create an "extremely attractive target for cybercriminals", according to the letter seen by Reuters that also called for stricter access.

However, the government said on Monday that it would proceed with the October 1 start date mandated by a new federal law and that it had foreseen various measures to ensure the "highest possible level of protection".

Switzerland, a major wealth management hub, has previously said that a central register is needed to strengthen the prevention and prosecution of financial crime and to preserve its reputation as a financial centre.

Swiss lawmakers already watered down new money laundering curbs over competitiveness concerns.

(Reporting by Emma Farge, Editing by Miranda Murray)