Tag Archives: 3.) Swissinfo Business and Economy

Two months after paying a $100 million fine in the US for illegal trading operations, cryptocurrency exchange BitMEX is lining up a test for Switzerland’s financial regulator. With a raft of recent legislative amendments, “Crypto Nation” Switzerland is bidding to become a global hub for legally-compliant cryptocurrency activities. Crypto derivatives exchange BitMEX wants to leverage this legal basis to launch a brokerage service. As I’ve said previously, the Swiss...

Switzerland has enough money and technology to drastically reduce emissions and become a leader in international climate negotiations. But it needs to be more ambitious, says Ludwig Luz, president of the Swiss Youth for Climate group. This year’s UN climate conference (COP26) in Glasgow is the most important since COP21 in Paris in 2015. The latest IPCC publicationExternal link offers a dire outlook. Scientists do not contest climate change and the need to act...

Goods are being delayed in container ports in many parts of the world. Keystone / Neil Hall Four out of five firms surveyed by the Swiss Business Federation (economiesuisse) have complained of problems in getting hold of raw materials and essential parts for their goods. The cost of the worsening supply chain conditions is starting to be passed on to consumers. Some companies are looking into putting staff on shortened hours with economiesuisse warning that the...

The Swiss bank has been fined over CHF400 million for its role in a corruption scandal in Mozambique. Keystone / Ennio Leanza A Mozambique public finance watchdog is demanding an estimated $2 billion (CHF1.8 billion) in full debt relief from Credit Suisse, that is ten times more than what Swiss banking giant is willing to write off. “Credit Suisse’s admission of responsibility, failure to comply with the law (…) and involvement of employees in bribery underscores the...

Containers are piling up at ports, ships are waiting to offload cargo and store shelves are sitting empty. Are all the quick fixes enough to fix the real problems in our supply chains? Headlines over the past few weeks about our global supply chain woes are enough to make anyone start stocking up on toilet paper and other essentials (again!). Goods from steel and lumber to toys, bicycles, and semiconductors are all facing delivery delays and higher prices, causing...

PostBus is among the new participants in this initiative to reduce energy consumption and make it renewable. The Swiss Broadcasting company SRF has also joined. Keystone / Gian Ehrenzeller Some government departments and 13 other Swiss entities have signed a pact to increase energy efficiency, expand renewable energies and make their investments “climate compatible”. The initiative contributes to implementing Switzerland’s Energy Strategy 2050 and achieving a net...

An electricity agreement between Switzerland and the European Union has been on hold since 2018. © Keystone / Gaetan Bally The Swiss government has shared its vision for coping with major power outages in a brochure shared with thousands of companies, the weekly NZZ am Sonntag reported on Sunday. In the absence of an electricity agreement with the European Union, such a scenario is likely if large power plants fail in Switzerland or abroad. Swiss companies could be...

The United Kingdom and the European Union are grappling with truck diver shortages that complicate economic recovery amid the coronavirus pandemic. Keystone / Joe Giddens Unlike other Western European nations, Switzerland is not at risk of a supply chain crisis due to a lack of truck drivers, according to the president of a major logistics and transport company. “The situation in Switzerland is significantly better than in the rest of Europe,” Rolf Galliker,...

Swiss private banks increased their assets under management to almost CHF3 trillion last year © Keystone / Gaetan Bally Swiss private banks managed to increase their assets under management to CHF2.9 trillion ($3.15 trillion) last year, an increase of 2.8% on 2019. “The year 2020 was dominated by the Covid-19 pandemic, yet the Swiss private banking sector still got off relatively lightly compared to other industries,” consultancy firm PwC said in its Private Banking...

Under an extreme scenario, Switzerland’s electricity supply could be interrupted for up to 500 hours © Keystone / Gaetan Bally If progress is not made on an electricity agreement with the European Union, at least at a technical level, Switzerland is likely to face a significant problem guaranteeing electricity in the short and medium term, especially in winter. This is the conclusion of an external report on supply security, presented to the government on Wednesday....