Half of interest-free Covid-19 loans to companies remain unused
Average use of loans was higher in sectors hit hard by the pandemic, such as tourism, events, hotels and catering.
Keystone / Jean-christophe Bott
Around 135,000 companies in Switzerland have taken advantage of the interest-free emergency loans but so far half of the money is still in their accounts.
The “Covid-19 refinancing facility” (CRF) was designed to provide cash-strapped companies with emergency borrowing to get through the pandemic. Loans of up to CHF500,000 ($510,000) have been made available free of interest, while firms pay 0.5% on larger loans of up to CHF20 million.
CRF comes to an end on Friday at midnight with the amount borrowed so far coming to CHF16.5 billion.
According to an estimate by Alexandre Prêtre of Swiss bank UBS, half of this amount is sitting unused in the bank accounts of the borrowers. Average use of loans in sectors hit hard by the pandemic, such as tourism, events, hotels and catering, were much higher than in IT or banking services, for example.
Demand for these emergency loans was also modest. Less than a quarter of the companies operating in Switzerland have made use of the CRF and barely 40% of the money set aside by the federal government has been paid out at the request of companies. This is probably because the Swiss economy was doing quite well before the crisis and in general companies had decent reserves and little debt.
Swiss study: insects mainly migrate at midday and dusk
This content was published on
A study led by the Swiss Ornithological Institute in canton Lucerne is helping to better understand the movement patterns of migratory insects.
Red Cross: 22 staff killed in Middle East since October
This content was published on
The Red Cross and Red Crescent network in Gaza and Israel has lost 22 staff members since last October, the Swiss Red Cross (SRC) said on Wednesday.
Dortmund’s Kobel is first Swiss goalie in Champions League final
This content was published on
Borussia Dortmund’s Gregor Kobel has achieved history by becoming the first Swiss goalkeeper to reach a Champion’s League final.
University students in Switzerland join Gaza protest wave
This content was published on
Pro-Palestinian activists occupied university buildings in Lausanne, Geneva and Zurich on Tuesday, widening the protest movement in the Alpine nation.
TradeXBank to resume full operations after Sberbank Switzerland taken off sanctions list
This content was published on
TradeXBank, the former Swiss branch of Russia’s Sberbank, will be able to resume its dollar-denominated activities from the second half of this year.
Geneva decides not to remove controversial memorials
This content was published on
The city of Geneva has presented an action plan regarding a series of controversial local statues and monuments of historical figures linked to racism, colonialism or slavery.
University of Lausanne calls for end to pro-Palestine sit-in
This content was published on
The pro-Palestinian occupation continues at the University of Lausanne (UNIL). On Monday evening, a group of students refused to agree to the deadline set by the rectorate.
Ukraine peace conference should include Russia, says Chinese ambassador
This content was published on
China supports a peace conference on the Ukraine war that would see equal participation of all parties, says Chinese Ambassador to Russia Zhang Hanhui.
Swiss hotel association says Covid-19 loans should be waived
This content was published on
Hotellerie Schweiz says additional measures are needed to help the hotel sector, which has been badly hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
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.