Luxembourg has renewed the mandate of Claude Marx as director general of its financial regulator, extending his leadership of the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier for another five years as the authority marks a decade of profound institutional change.
By grand-ducal decree dated 23 January, Marx’s mandate was renewed with effect from 5 February, allowing him to begin a third five-year term. He was first appointed in 2016, shortly after the launch of Europe’s post-crisis banking supervision framework.
Since then, the CSSF has evolved from a predominantly national supervisor into a central player in Europe’s integrated supervisory system. When Marx took office, the EU’s Single Supervisory Mechanism had only just become operational, with the European Central Bank assuming direct oversight of major euro-area banks. Today, the CSSF contributes to supervisory decisions each year within the ECB framework and plays an active role in shaping supervisory convergence through the European Securities and Markets Authority.
Increased supervisory intensity
The expansion of the CSSF’s role has been accompanied by a sharp increase in supervisory intensity. Over the past decade, the authority has moved from largely document-based oversight to a more data-driven, risk-focused approach. Digital reporting systems, enhanced on-site inspections and a more visible enforcement regime now underpin supervision across banks, investment funds, payment firms and other financial institutions. New areas such as cyber resilience, climate risk, operational resilience and anti-money laundering controls have become core elements of the supervisory framework.
Under Marx’s leadership, the CSSF has also undergone a significant internal transformation. Staff numbers have risen from just over 600 in 2015 to nearly 1,000 today, reflecting both the growth of Luxembourg’s financial centre and the widening scope of European regulation. The authority has invested heavily in specialised expertise, digital infrastructure and internal governance, positioning itself as a full-scale supervisory institution rather than a lean national regulator.
Marx is also a member of the board of supervisors of ESMA, giving Luxembourg a prominent voice in EU-level regulatory discussions.
Formerly at Lombard and HSBC
Before joining the CSSF, Marx was chief executive of Lombard International Assurance, a Luxembourg-based life insurance company owned by Blackstone. He previously spent 17 years at HSBC, where he rose to deputy chief executive of its private banking division. Earlier in his career, he worked as a lawyer at a Luxembourg firm that later became part of Allen & Overy and at accounting firm Arthur Andersen.
His renewed mandate comes amid changes to the CSSF’s senior management. The government recently appointed Pascale Toussing to the regulator’s executive committee for a five-year term, replacing Françoise Kauthen. Toussing previously served as head of Luxembourg’s direct tax authority and as an adviser to the finance minister.
The CSSF’s executive board now includes Marx as director general alongside Jean-Pierre Faber, Marco Zwick, Pascale Toussing and Claude Wampach.
Luxembourg is Europe’s largest cross-border investment fund centre and one of the world’s leading hubs for international finance. The CSSF supervises a sector that accounts for a substantial share of the country’s economic activity, with responsibilities that have steadily expanded alongside the integration of European financial markets.