The Swiss franc has traditionally been a safe haven for investors in times of crisis. Why exactly has the Swiss National Bank been doing everything it can to sully the currency's reputation? (Michele Andina & Matthew Allen, swissinfo.ch).
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1 minute
My work is focused on making videos and podcasts about science and technology topics. I specialize in developing explainatory video formats for mobile viewing, mixing animation and documentary styles.
I studied filmmaking and animation at Zurich University of the Arts and began working as a video journalist at SWI swissinfo.ch in 2004. Since then I have specialised in creating different styles of animation for our visual products.
The banking crash of 2008 plunged several countries into stagnation or recession. Investors looked for a place that would preserve what assets they had left. People scrambled out of the euro and the US dollar and into the Swiss franc. This quickly had a dramatic effect on exchange rates. By the end of 2009 the euro had dropped below CHF1.50. Swiss exporters saw the price of their goods rise, making them less competitive in their main market of Europe.
To make matters worse, the Swiss franc was also appreciating against the US dollar. In the autumn of 2010 $1 cost less than CHF1. The Swiss National Bank (SNB) decided to act. It printed Swiss francs and used them to buy up euros in an attempt to stop the franc from appreciating too strongly. This came at a cost. The SNB policy was increasingly criticised for being too unstable and risky.
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If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.