SNB & CHF

In 2018, Switzerland topped the Financial Secrecy Index, produced by the Tax Justice Network The Swiss government wants to revamp the laws against money laundering so that lawyers, notaries and other advisors are required to comply with due diligence obligations. The Federal Council (executive body) proposed on Wednesday a set of legal amendments external linkto meet international standards in the fight against money...

Will bitcoin appear on this chart of global reserve currencies in the future? Could a non-state cryptocurrency like bitcoin become a global reserve currency? I first proposed the idea back in November 2013, long before bitcoin’s rise to $19,000, decline to $3,200, recent ascent to $13,000 and current retrace. The idea is intriguing on a number of levels. In terms of retaining value though thick and thin, the ultimate...

The Swiss banking industry continues to turn in a profit despite low interest rates. Swiss commercial banks achieved higher profits last year, mortgage loans tipped the CHF1 trillion ($1.02 trillion) mark and costs were saved by reducing headcounts. These are the findings of an annual report from the Swiss National bank (SNB). The SNBexternal link’s “Banks in Switzerlandexternal link” annual report shows combined Swiss...

© Andor Bujdoso | Dreamstime.com The gap between Switzerland’s official retirement age – 65 for men and 64 for women – and average life expectancy is long. Life expectancy at 65 is 20 years for men (85) and 23 for women (88). More and more people are questioning the viability of living for two decades or more without working, particularly when the population is aging and the pension system is crumbling. However, rather...

Interview with Chris Powell Every seasoned gold investor and every student of monetary history has likely stumbled upon various theories about institutional manipulation of the gold market. While it is true that rarely is there smoke without fire, it is still important to approach this matter rationally and form opinions based on sound evidence and solid research. This is why I have personally been following the work of...

There is a 1:252 pay gap ratio between the lowest and highest paid staff at the Swiss bank UBS Large wage gaps continue by gender and within Switzerland’s largest 26 firms, according to two new surveys. According to the Federal Office for Statisticsexternal link, the median gross salary of male full-time employees in Switzerland stood at CHF85,200 ($87,276) last year, while for full-time female employees it was...

Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.05% at 1.1106 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, June 28(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: Quarter-end positioning seems to dominate today’s activity. The outcome of bilateral talks at the G20 gathering partly reflects the influence of the US President who eschews multilateral efforts as a hindrance to its sovereignty. Equities...

The Swiss National Bank has today published its report Banks in Switzerland 2018 and the corresponding data for its annual banking statistics.1 The most significant events are summarised below. Overview As at the end of 2018, there were 248 banks in Switzerland. Of this number, 216 reported a profit with an aggregated total of CHF 12.8 billion. Losses amounting to CHF 1.3 billion were recorded by 32 banks. The...

According to the BLS, inflation in the category of “New Vehicles” has been practically non-existent the past 21 years. Longtime readers know I’ve long turned a skeptical gaze at official calculations of inflation, offering real-world analyses such as The Burrito Index: Consumer Prices Have Soared 160% Since 2001 (August 1, 2016) and Burrito Index Update: Burrito Cost Triples, Official Inflation Up 43% from 2001 (May 31,...

Dancing, the federal health office says, is a good way to keep off the weight. Swiss seniors are much more likely to be overweight that other age categories, new statistics from the Federal Office for Public Health (FOPH) show. Some 53% of over-65-year-olds have a body mass index judged to be too high (over 25 on the BMI scale), according to the statistics released on Tuesday by the FOPHexternal link. Older men are more...