Swiss Banking In An International Context

A study of Swiss financial institutions which aims to discover why Swiss banking has been so singularly successful in the face of international debt and financial crises. The book also provides a theoretical analysis of international banking, utilizing the Swiss example as a case study.

In this volume the authors provide a survey and an examination of the roots of Swiss banking in order to explain the phenomenal success of Switzerland's banks. Contrary to the conventional wisdom, Swiss banking did not originate with the exiled Hugenot bankers of Geneva. Centuries before Louis XIV, Basle had become a principal banking centre although it was not yet part of the Swiss Confederation. From historical beginnings to contemporary comparative analysis, the book offers an authoritative explanation and analysis of the success of the Swiss banks.

Inside Swiss Banking provides an insider's perspective on how Swiss banks work, what legal frameworks guide them and how they navigate though the choppy waters of an increasingly global marketplace. Covering areas reaching from the Holocaust to Ferdinand Marcos and the most recent troubles of UBS in the United States, readers will get a rare level of insight into the many mysteries of Swiss banking, the true meaning of bank secrecy and the challenges facing the Swiss Banking brand as a new world order is about to transpire in the aftermath of the deepest economic crisis since the Great Depression.

The story broke in 2006: Since 9/11, US intelligence services have had access to practically any international money transfer data by infiltrating the SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication) network. Banks worldwide transfer money orders and personal customer data through this network. While the surveillance was all-embracing in 2001, it was gradually limited over the course of the last few years. Revealed by the New York Times, the SWIFT affair has had global as well as national implications. While this dissertation first examines the international dimension of the SWIFT surveillance, the analysis mainly focuses on the national repercussions for Switzerland. Arditi Prize 2010 in International Affairs.

Seminar paper from the year 2010 in the subject Economics - Finance, grade: 1,2, University of East London (Business School), course: International Financial Institutions and Markets, language: English, abstract: The Swiss financial centre, with banking as its leading segment, is of immense international significance and is positioned amongst global market leaders. The financial centre contributes greatly to gross value added in Switzerland and by doing so to the wealth of the whole Swiss population. (Swiss Bankers Association, 2010) In many aspects the banks are highly important to the Swiss economy. In terms of employees they offer a wide range of skilled jobs with potential earnings that are above average; a great portion of public sector financing is secured do to their tax contribution; and not to forget that they are centres of innovation and drivers of value added thus generating momentum for the entire economy. (Swiss Bankers Association, 2010)

In Secrets of Swiss Banking, offshore financial specialist Hoyt Barber shows how to protect your hard-earned assets by safely and legally moving your money into trusted Swiss financial institutions. Along with timely banking advice and solid investment insights, Barber provides authoritative information on a variety of Swiss banking-related issues—from the basics of opening an account to the nuances of numerous Swiss banking and investment strategies. He also details Swiss banking policies and regulations along with U.S. tax and reporting requirements.