Tag Archives: Politics

The roots of the injustice that brought over a million to the streets  It is the core of a long running joke that the French love to strike more than they like to work – and for good reason. Demonstrations, strikes and even riots, have been a common occurrence for decades. However, this latest round seems to be interestingly persistent, despite the fact that it’s receiving increasingly sparse media coverage.   The last time that the French took to the streets and stayed there,...

Part II of II by Claudio Grass A real systemic crisis If there was one thing more telling than the bank failures themselves, it was the governments’ reaction to them. The sheer panic that shook US, Swiss and Eurozone officials was almost pitiable to behold. The way they all rushed to make statements denying that this would be a repeat of 2008 was alarming instead of reassuring. And their apparent, urgent desperation to be believed was perhaps reason enough why they shouldn’t...

Part II of II by Claudio Grass A real systemic crisis If there was one thing more telling than the bank failures themselves, it was the governments’ reaction to them. The sheer panic that shook US, Swiss and Eurozone officials was almost pitiable to behold. The way they all rushed to make statements denying that this would be a repeat of 2008 was alarming instead of reassuring. And their apparent, urgent desperation to be believed was perhaps reason...

Part I of II by Claudio Grass It might sound like an old-fashioned notion, the sort of thing that one reads about in period novels and romantically sighs “oh, the good old days”. It might sound like old timely advice, perhaps of the kind that our grandparents would have given to our parents: “It doesn’t matter if you make mistakes, even if you lose everything, as long as you still have your honor”. Sure. But in our cynical, jaded and largely pedestrian day and age, the idea of...

Part I of II by Claudio Grass It might sound like an old-fashioned notion, the sort of thing that one reads about in period novels and romantically sighs “oh, the good old days”. It might sound like old timely advice, perhaps of the kind that our grandparents would have given to our parents: “It doesn’t matter if you make mistakes, even if you lose everything, as long as you still have your honor”. Sure. But in our cynical, jaded and largely pedestrian...

On 31 August 2022, when an energy shortage loomed, Switzerland’s federal government launched a campaign to cut the nation’s energy consumption. Targets were set to cut gas consumption by 15% and electricity use by 10%. Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.comData published this week showed cuts to gas consumption exceeded the voluntary target set, while cuts to electricity were well below, reported RTS. Gas consumption in Switzerland fell by nearly 18%, well in excess of the 15% target. Electricity...

When a bank run started at Credit Suisse in mid-March 2023, a rushed acquisition deal involving UBS, the Swiss National Bank and Swiss federal government was agreed. The deal, which includes CHF 109 billion of federal government guarantees, was agreed by the Federal Council, Switzerland’s executive. This week Switzerland’s parliament rejected the CHF 109 billion federal government guarantee included in the deal. © Zkk600 | Dreamstime.comThe rushed deal included the federal government...

During a meeting on 5 April 2023, Switzerland’s Federal Council decided to axe or cut the bonuses of around 1,000 people at Credit Suisse. © Octavian Lazar | Dreamstime.comThe move follows a rushed acquisition deal involving UBS and the Swiss authorities after a bank run threatened Credit Suisse’s solvency in mid-March. Switzerland’s Banking Act allows the Swiss government to impose remuneration-related measures if a systemically important bank is directly or indirectly granted state...

When a bank run started at Credit Suisse in mid-March 2023, UBS already had a secret plan for a potential takeover of its competitor, according to Bloomberg. © Denis Linine | Dreamstime.comWhen UBS chairman Colm Kelleher joined UBS in 2022 he inherited a plan put together by the bank’s former chairman as early as 2020 on how Credit Suisse could be taken over. Kelleher built on the plan with help from a small group of bankers from Morgan Stanley, his former employer. According to...

As expected, this week, Switzerland’s left leaning political parties and unions announced the launch of a vote to strike down the work related pension reform plan accepted by the government last week, reported RTS. Photo by cottonbro studio on Pexels.comThe government plan, which reflects the challenging mathematics of funding pensions at their current level in the face of an ageing population, essentially requires most workers to pay more and receive less. It also forces some that...