Here you will find the most frequently asked questions about retrocessions and our services.
Liti-Link AG is a service provider from Switzerland specializing in claims management which asserts and successfully carries out legitimate, financial claims against companies. Liti-Link specialises in the recovery of unlawfully withheld retrocessions and has already assisted several hundred institutional as well as private investors in asserting their claims.
Liti-Link has an experienced team with long years of experience in claim management and a broad partnership network of law firms in Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany.
Liti-Link uses standardised and certified IT processes that are lean, digital and secure while guaranteeing complete confidentiality at all times. The security of your data is of utmost importance.
The company name Liti-Link is a combination of the words LITIGATION and LINK. As a litigation funding company, we provide our clients the opportunity to enforce their claims in litigation or arbitration. We are the LINK to successful litigation funding, thus enforcing claims. As a client you will minimise your cost and procedural risk. You will secure financial leeway for yourself, thus your negotiating position. As a litigation funder, Liti-Link is your shortcut to successful and worry-free enforcement of your claims.
Since May 2017, we have been able to win a four-digit number of clients for our product Retro-Back. We have already successfully supported several hundred private and institutional investors in asserting their claims.
Liti-Link is as a litigation funder specializing in claims management .We assert the legitimate, financial claims of clients against companies taking it to court proceedings if required.
With our product "Retro-Back" we support you in reclaiming retrocessions and would be pleased to be contacted. The Liti-Link retrocalculator on our website allows you to calculate quickly and easily how much money you can claim back, completely free of charge and without obligation.
Yes. The security of your data is of utmost importance.
The availability and reliability of the IT infrastructure are essential for a successful and internationally active company. However, it is just as important to protect sensitive data from unauthorised access.
As each bank or asset manager has different retrocession agreements with third parties, it is necessary for Liti-Link to request the relevant documentation from your bank and/or asset manager for a detailed and substantive calculation of your claim This must be disclosed by law.
The information and calculations on our website generally cannot fully reflect your specific situation and are therefore only an initial indication for your claim.
Claims are calculated based on your information on the average assessment amount, average assessment period and assuming a retrocession rate of 0.75% per annum and 5 % interest on arrears per annum. Please note that a 30-year limitation period applies in Liechtenstein.
Please be aware that the amount of retrocessions received have and do vary by bank or asset manager. Depending on the arrangement and point in time, the value of retrocessions received and to be returned may be up to 1.5 % of the assessment amount per year.
Along with stopping the limitation period through the relevant authorities - by means of the so-called “Betreibung”, the Swiss version of legal enforcement - based on the information provided by you on the
Liti-Link will use a retrocession rate of 1.5 % per annum. Since the exact amount of the retrocession is not yet known, this is to file a sufficiently high amount against the bank and/ or asset manager and stop the limitation period.
Would you like to know how your exact claims against your bank and/ or asset manager? Not a problem. With our Retro-Back tool you can determine and enforce your specific claims by assigning them to Liti-Link.
When talking about retrocessions - "retros" for short , it is important to distinguish between retrocessions and stock maintenance commissions:
While retrocessions are refunds from a fee charged directly to the end client, stock maintenance commissions are an indirect fee from the management commission that is charged periodically to the fund assets and reduces asset’s returns.
Experts estimate that several billion Swiss francs have been unlawfully retained by banks and asset managers in this way (Swiss Banking data from 2012, source: Finalix AG, Zug, 2014).
However, as this distinction is often not known, we reclaim all financial benefits (particularly provisions, retrocessions, stock maintenance commissions, kickbacks, finder’s fees, distribution remunerations etc.) for our clients.
Anyone who has invested money in Switzerland or Liechtenstein in the past ten years (limitation period in Switzerland) or 30 years (limitation period in Liechtenstein) (regardless of whether within the scope of an asset management contract, advisory mandate or execution-only relationship). However, due to the revision of the law decided on 07.04.2022, a limitation period of ten years will also apply in Liechtenstein from 01.06.2023.
Retrocessions can be reclaimed for private accounts as well as for inherited accounts. Monetary benefits collected by banks and asset managers can also be reclaimed for accounts of companies, foundations and trusts.
An existing business or contractual relationship is not required for the recovery, but is also not an obstacle. Likewise, no documentation (contracts, statements, etc.) is necessary for the recovery process.
The sooner the better. If you wait too long, the limitation period for the lucrative years may expire and you will no longer be able to reclaim the retrocessions you are entitled to.
The limitation period is not legally interrupted by sending a letter to your bank and/or asset manager or by receiving a disclosure. Only if the limitation period is interrupted in a legally correct manner is the limitation period stopped.
Switzerland:
Liechtenstein:
When talking about retrocessions - "retros" for short , it is important to distinguish between retrocessions and stock maintenance commissions:
While retrocessions are refunds from a fee charged directly to the end client, stock maintenance commissions are an indirect fee from the management commission that is charged periodically to the fund assets and reduces asset’s returns.
Experts estimate that several billion Swiss francs have been unlawfully retained by banks and asset managers in this way (Swiss Banking data from 2012, source: Finalix AG, Zug, 2014).
However, as this distinction is often not known, we reclaim all financial benefits (particularly provisions, retrocessions, stock maintenance commissions, kickbacks, finder’s fees, distribution remunerations etc.) for our clients.
"Retro-Back" is the name of Liti-Link's innovative retrocession recovery service. The Liti-Link retrocalculator on our website allows you to calculate quickly how much money you can claim back, completely free of charge and without obligation.
With the ruling BGE 4C_432 from 2006, it was established in Switzerland that retrocessions are due to the investors. However, this was a grey area as investors can also waive their claim but a legally valid waiver of retrocessions requires clear, formal requirements, which were only established by financial service providers in a handful of cases.
Only a few investors have so far reclaimed the retrocessions they were due, because reclaiming is not made easy for investors. In addition to the blocking tactics of the Swiss and Liechtenstein financial institutions, there are numerous formalities to be observed. It is important to interrupt the statute of limitations as soon as possible before your claim expires completely (ten years in Switzerland and / 30 years in Liechtenstein until the cut-off date of 31.05.2023, thereafter also ten years in Liechtenstein)). The contract documents must be analysed and any waivers of retrocessions must be reviewed. Many of the waivers are invalid because they do not comply with the formal criteria of the Swiss Federal Court ruling (six in the meantime).
Unlawfully withheld retrocessions can also be reclaimed by investors even if there was no asset management mandate (e.g. advisory mandate or execution-only mandate). In its ruling of 15 November 2017 HG150054-O , the Zurich Commercial Court already clarified obiter dictum that there is also an obligation to surrender monetary benefits obtained in excess of the fee, such as retrocessions, in the case of execution-only mandates or advisory mandates. The ruling and decision of 5 October 2021 of the Commercial Court of the Canton of Zurich once again states that, irrespective of the type of business relationship, there is a duty to disclose monetary benefits obtained in excess of the fee, such as retrocessions.
While the Federal Supreme Court in Switzerland ruled on the issue of retrocessions already in 2006, the topic has emerged in Liechtenstein in the last few years only. In the meantime, the Liechtenstein Supreme Court ("OGH") has also ruled that retrocessions, regardless of the type of business relationship (asset management, advisory mandate, execution-only mandate), must be disclosed to investors and generally are due to the investors.
Anyone who has invested money in Switzerland or Liechtenstein in the past ten years (limitation period in Switzerland) or 30 years (limitation period in Liechtenstein) (regardless of whether within the scope of an asset management contract, advisory mandate or execution-only relationship). However, due to the revision of the law decided on 07.04.2022, a limitation period of ten years will also apply in Liechtenstein from 01.06.2023.
Retrocessions can be reclaimed for private accounts as well as for inherited accounts. Monetary benefits collected by banks and asset managers can also be reclaimed for accounts of companies, foundations and trusts.
An existing business or contractual relationship is not required for the recovery, but is also not an obstacle. Likewise, no documentation (contracts, statements, etc.) is necessary for the recovery process.
You can reclaim retrocessions if the following points are fulfilled.
If one or both of these points apply to you, it is highly likely that your bank and/or asset manager has collected retrocessions. Whether and to what extent retrocessions have been paid can only be determined after detailed disclosure. The amount of retrocessions that can be reclaimed can only be determined after reviewing all documents.
Many of our clients report that they have been rejected by their bank or asset manager. Others report that they have received no reply at all.
In most cases, a lot of time passes before investors receive a response to their request. In the meantime, the statute of limitations continues to run and retrocessions are lapsing on a daily basis in favour of the banks and asset managers. Banks and asset managers almost always refer to (often invalid) waiver clauses in the contract and refuse to refund the withheld retrocessions.
Liti-Link has several years of experience with this strategy of banks and asset managers and knows the case law concerning retrocessions in detail. Most of the waivers argued by banks and asset managers do not comply with the criteria laid down by the Federal Court in Switzerland and the Supreme Court in Liechtenstein.
The reclaiming of unlawfully retained retrocessions from banks and asset managers confronts many investors without the technical knowledge, the necessary pressure and the legal expertise with major challenges.
The sooner the better. If you wait too long, the limitation period for the lucrative years may expire and you will no longer be able to reclaim the retrocessions you are entitled to.
The limitation period is not legally interrupted by sending a letter to your bank and/or asset manager or by receiving a disclosure. Only if the limitation period is interrupted in a legally correct manner is the limitation period stopped.
To obtain an estimate of the amount of the revovery, you can enter your data (∅ assessment amount and duration) in our retrocalculator.
Unfortunately, it is not possible to make a detailed estimate of the amount to be reclaimed before the bank and/or asset manager discloses the relevant information. The amount of retrocessions that have been withheld depends on several factors, e.g. the type of mandate, the products in your portfolio, the frequency of movements in the portfolio, the years of investment and, of course, the bank and/or asset manager with which you have or had your custody account.
Experts estimate that several billion Swiss francs have been unlawfully withheld by banks and asset managers (Swiss Banking data from 2012, source: Finalix AG, Zug, 2014).
Each investor is free to assert his claims directly against the bank and/or asset manager. However, our experience shows that such requests are often not handled in a timely manner by the banks and/or asset managers and it is a very frustrating and financially challenging task for our clients.
The varying wording of the deposit regulations, general terms and conditions or other contractual documents formulated and continuously adapted by the banks and asset managers makes it necessary for Liti-Link to request these documents from your bank and/or asset manager, analyse them and, if necessary, submit them to an external legal assessment for a detailed and valid examination of the enforceability of your claims.
The lessons learned from handling hundreds of recovery cases show that, despite investor-friendly case law, appropriate expertise and a strong negotiating position are essential for successful enforcement of claims.
Switzerland:
Liechtenstein:
Since May 2017, we have been able to win a four-digit number of clients for our product Retro-Back. We have already successfully supported several hundred private and institutional investors in asserting their claims.
We hope you understand that due to reasons of confidentiality we are unable to comment on this subject.
Liti-Link is as a litigation funder specializing in claims management .We assert the legitimate, financial claims of clients against companies taking it to court proceedings if required.
With our product "Retro-Back" we support you in reclaiming retrocessions and would be pleased to be contacted. The Liti-Link retrocalculator on our website allows you to calculate quickly and easily how much money you can claim back, completely free of charge and without obligation.
Yes!
In principle, any investor worldwide is able to assert claims in Switzerland and Liechtenstein for retrocessions withheld. These investors once again have a clean record and have nothing further to fear.
Investors can determine the size of their potential financial claim on our website by using the retrocalculator. In addition, you can enter your data online under the item "Secure claims" and submit it online. This will automatically send you our contract. Of course, you are also welcome to contact us by phone or email.
In the course of an assignment, your claims will be assigned to Liti-Link. After submitting the application form, you will receive the "Agreement on the assignment of claims for damages, surrender claims and information entitlements re. retrocessions" (pages 1-2) as well as an "Assignment agreement" (page 3) and "Power of attorney" (page 4) by email. You sign these documents and initially return them to us in a digital format. You send the original documentation by post to Liti-Link AG, Schützenwiese 8 in 9451 Kriessern (Switzerland).
On receipt of the complete signed documentation in digital form (scan, photo etc.) Liti-Link then stops the statutory limitation of the claim with the relevant authorities, without delay via the so called “Betreibung”, the Swiss version of the enforcement action.
Liti-Link simultaneously requests full disclosure from the bank and/or the asset manager and analyses the documents provided to it. Based on the disclosed documents, the amount of the claim can be calculated.
In the next step, Liti-Link reclaims the retrocessions owed from the financial service provider concerned for the last ten (Switzerland) or 30 years (Liechtenstein).
Any share of a successful recovery for Liti-Link on the net proceeds (= claims in respect of the settlement amount or the claims awarded by the court less all third-party costs) is only then relevant when the claim is successfully asserted and depends materially on the amount of the recovery obtained. The advantage for investors: no risk of costs or high legal fees and court fees are incurred in the first place.
All procedural costs will be borne by Liti-Link in advance. These will only be deducted from the enforced claim in the event of a successful outcome. In an unsuccessful case, all third-party costs will be borne by Liti-Link.
This is how we help you to recover your money:
You must sign our contract documents. By doing so, you assign your claims against your (former) bank and/or asset manager to Liti-Link. Liti-Link will take care of the rest of the process.
We only need a few details from our customers to prepare the contract documents:
Depending on the investment period, it is worth enforcing a claim for the recovery of retrocessions on assets from an amount of 200,000 Swiss Francs.
Liti-Link is only entitled to share in the proceeds when a claim successfully recovers the unlawfully withheld retrocessions. Liti-Link receives 40% of the net proceeds as a success fee. The advantage for investors is that there is no cost or litigation risk. In a case where the process does not prove successful, no costs are incurred by the client.
Liti-Link is only entitled to share in the proceeds when a claim successfully recovers the unlawfully withheld commission fees. The amount of the share depends substantially on the amount of recovery claimed and is directly set off against the payment made by the bank or financial service provider. Liti-Link therefore guarantees that clients are at no time required to provide advance payments. In a case where the process does not prove successful, no costs are incurred by the client.
The distribution of the reclaimed retrocessions is always calculated from the net proceeds of the clawback. The net proceeds of the clawback are calculated by deducting the external costs (= third-party costs) from the gross proceeds. These external costs are exclusively third party costs and not any internal costs or expenses of Liti-Link.
As a rule, the external costs are the costs of administrative authorities and courts or any legal fees. The actual costs vary from case to case.
If a case is unsuccessful, our client (assignor) does not have to pay any costs incurred during the process to Liti-Link (assignee). The worst case scenario for the client is that nothing comes out.
If a case is successful, then the net proceeds are split between the assignor and assignee as contractually agreed.
As Liti-Link also shares in the net proceeds, and only if we are successful in recovering retrocessions, Liti-Link strives to keep external costs as low as possible. Our aim is to maximise the net proceeds of each case.
Despite assignment to Liti-Link, the basis of the claim is the contractual relationship between the client and the bank and/or asset manager. Therefore, in very rare cases, it may be necessary for you as a client to be called as a witness at court.
Yes. The security of your data is of utmost importance.
The availability and reliability of the IT infrastructure are essential for a successful and internationally active company. However, it is just as important to protect sensitive data from unauthorised access.
As each bank or asset manager has different retrocession agreements with third parties, it is necessary for Liti-Link to request the relevant documentation from your bank and/or asset manager for a detailed and substantive calculation of your claim This must be disclosed by law.
The information and calculations on our website generally cannot fully reflect your specific situation and are therefore only an initial indication for your claim.
Claims are calculated based on your information on the average assessment amount, average assessment period and assuming a retrocession rate of 0.75% per annum and 5 % interest on arrears per annum. Please note that a 30-year limitation period applies in Liechtenstein.
Please be aware that the amount of retrocessions received have and do vary by bank or asset manager. Depending on the arrangement and point in time, the value of retrocessions received and to be returned may be up to 1.5 % of the assessment amount per year.
Along with stopping the limitation period through the relevant authorities - by means of the so-called “Betreibung”, the Swiss version of legal enforcement - based on the information provided by you on the
Liti-Link will use a retrocession rate of 1.5 % per annum. Since the exact amount of the retrocession is not yet known, this is to file a sufficiently high amount against the bank and/ or asset manager and stop the limitation period.
Would you like to know how your exact claims against your bank and/ or asset manager? Not a problem. With our Retro-Back tool you can determine and enforce your specific claims by assigning them to Liti-Link.
If you have/had a custody account with more than one bank and/or asset manager, you must assign your claims to Liti-Link individually per bank/asset manager.
Simply send us additional forms for each individual contractual relationship after successfully sending the first form.
If you have/had multiple accounts with a bank and/or asset manager and they are/have all been in the name of the same account holder, then sending one form will be sufficient and Liti-Link will receive the information for all accounts/deposits.
Yes, it is possible to reclaim withheld retrocessions for inherited securities accounts. We are currently handling several mandates of heirs and reclaiming the unlawfully withheld retrocessions from banks and/or asset managers.
Experience shows that Liti-Link needs the following information from you for the analysis as well as for the further procedure:
There are several reasons for this. Very many investors do not know that they can assert claims in Switzerland or Liechtenstein. Others are afraid of high legal fees or prefer to stay anonymous. Still others are of the opinion that it is not worth the effort.
Even with a deposit volume of CHF 200,000, a possible clawback of a total of CHF 10,000 to 20,000 is calculated for an assessment period of ten years plus interest. The reluctance of investors is playing into the hands of banks and asset managers in Switzerland and Liechtenstein, and more and more claims are becoming time-barred. Therefore, reclaim your money now before the limitation period expires.