Tag Archives: Business

Although prices vary widely depending on the type and method of transaction, some banks may earn money by adding surcharges to currency exchanges. (Keystone) - Click to enlarge A study of over 40 Swiss finance institutions has revealed ‘striking’ differences in exchange rates for banknotes and currencies as well as the addition of hefty mark-ups and fees. Online banking and insurance comparison service...

Swiss Economics Minister Doris Leuthard (left) and Nestlé Director General Petraea Heynike at the inauguration of the Chocolate Centre of Excellence at Broc in 2009 (Keystone) - Click to enlarge The Swiss food giant Nestlé is transfering its chocolate research centre from Broc in canton Fribourg to York in the north of England. Some 25 jobs are affected but the existing chocolate factory in the Swiss town is...

Reports South Korea and China could ban cryptocurrency trading has sparked worries of a wider regulatory crackdown (Keystone) - Click to enlarge The federal authorities have set up a special working group to look into how to properly oversee blockchain technologies and initial coin offerings (ICO). The Swiss taskforce is set to report back by the end of 2018. The State Secretariat for International...

Staying on good terms with parents can pay off – increasingly so (Keystone) The Swiss are passing on more inheritance wealth to family, friends and other beneficiaries than ever before – the CHF63 billion ($65 billion) bequeathed in 2015 is double that of 20 years ago, according to the NZZ am Sonntag newspaper. The Office for Work and Social Politics Studies estimates than an additional sum of between CHF16 billion and...

Switzerland recently suffered a setback in the negotiations when the EU decided to restrict Swiss stock exchange access to the EU market for a year (Keystone) - Click to enlarge According to an unpublished list that was revealed in some Swiss papers, Switzerland wants only five of around 120 bilateral treaties with the European Union to figure in a future institutional framework agreement. A reportexternal...

The Ammann Group is one of many Swiss companies to recently announce it will be moving jobs abroad (Keystone) Multinational companies based in Switzerland are increasingly moving experienced executives abroad to run production sites in lower-cost countries, according to a jobs placement company. The trend has been blamed on regulatory uncertainty in the Swiss marketplace. There have been concerns at Swiss companies...

US President Donald Trump attends the College Football Playoff National Championship game between the University of Alabama and the University of Georgia in Atlanta, Georgia, on January 8, 2018 (marketing) United States President Donald Trump plans to attend the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland later this month, his spokeswoman said on Tuesday. In a statement, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House...

The German group Zalando is now the number one e-commerce company in Switzerland (Keystone) Switzerland’s retail sector failed to profit from a weaker franc and improving economy last year and business remains sluggish, according to a Credit Suisse report. Retail sales increased by 0.1% in 2017 after two years’ decline, Credit Suisse noted in its annual industry surveyexternal link published on Tuesday. Retailers were...

Our earlier articles on bitcoin discuss the crypto asset as a currency and a commodity. Both papers focused on the consequences of bitcoin’s defining feature: the asymptotic supply limit of 21 million coins. This gives it an unusual juxtaposition of demand uncertainty and supply certainty (as well as inelasticity). As a currency, it gives rise to a tension between its use as a store of value and as medium of exchange....

Unlocked boxes: Swiss banking secrecy is not what it used to be. (Keystone) - Click to enlarge Switzerland’s highest court has ruled against the transfer of details of third parties such as bank employees or solicitors in cases of information handovers involving tax dodgers. Wednesday’s ruling by the Federal Court upheld an earlier decision in a case brought by a US expat in Switzerland who disputed the...