Swiss gold industry oversight too weak, say auditors
Workers in some gold mines are exposed to hazardous conditions.
Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.
The Swiss gold refining industry has once again come under scrutiny with a report that criticises the lack of control over imports of the precious metal. The Federal Audit Office says it is too easy for illegal imports to enter the country and that sanctions are inadequate.
This content was published on
3 minutes
When not covering fintech, cryptocurrencies, blockchain, banks and trade, swissinfo.ch's business correspondent can be found playing cricket on various grounds in Switzerland - including the frozen lake of St Moritz.
Most of the world’s gold passes through Switzerland to be transformed from raw material and refined. It’s a business that can range in value between CHF60 and CHF90 billion ($70-90 billion) every year.
Refineries insist they check the origins of the gold they receive to make sure it comes from well-regulated mines that respect human rights and workers’ health. But NGOs complain that laws are at best patchy, and leave too much discretion to the sector to self-regulate.
Now, state auditors say that Switzerland lacks a robust means of enforcing the laws that apply to the gold industry. Maximum fines of just CHF2,000 for accepting dirty gold are inadequate penalties, the body has said in a recently published report. In other words, monitoring gold is not a priority for customs officials.
Furthermore, the method of recording imports, which mixes up gold destined for banks with that being delivered to refineries, makes it hard to keep track of the overall picture.
External Content
Marc Ummel from the NGO Swissaid told Swiss public television RTS that routing gold from mines through third countries before it ends up in Switzerland obscures things further. For example, Venezuelan gold is channeled to Swiss refineries via the Caribbean island of Curaçao. “This detour makes it difficult to trace the origin of gold,” Ummel says.
The convoluted supply chain also provides unscrupulous traders the opportunity to mix dirty gold with clean shipments, according to NGOs.
More
More
Clean gold: How Switzerland could set new supply chain standards
This content was published on
Switzerland is the undisputed top dog of the global gold industry, refining a majority of the world’s gold, as well as being the leading exporter. But how seriously does the country take its responsibility to ensure sustainable mining and the protection of human rights? “This position of great global power comes with great responsibility because – here’s another thing too few people…
Both the Federal Customs Administration and the Swiss Association of Manufacturers and Traders in Precious Metals told RTS that they agreed with the broad thrust of the audit office report and said they would welcome a tightening of supervision – within reason. This would not include refineries agreeing to NGO demands to publish the names of gold mines they deal with.
The government has shown little appetite for tightening legislation surrounding the lucrative gold trade in Switzerland. The industry itself has made some moves towards self-regulation, such as the 2013 Better Gold Initiative.
Voters will meanwhile decide – either this autumn or early next year – on a “Responsible Business” initiative that would make Swiss companies legally accountable in Switzerland for the business they conduct abroad.
Popular Stories
More
Banking & Fintech
UBS releases ‘hundreds’ of staff in fresh wave of job cuts
Should Switzerland take measures to support its struggling industries?
Industrial policies are back in fashion, not only in the United States but also in the EU. Should Switzerland, where various industries are struggling, draw inspiration from such policies?
Asian investors sue Switzerland over Credit Suisse bond losses
This content was published on
More than 500 investors from Singapore, Japan and Hong Kong have launched claims against Switzerland in relation to AT1 bonds.
Man cleared of Geneva diplomat murder but convicted of rape
This content was published on
The Swiss Federal Criminal Court has acquitted an Ivorian-Italian dual national of murdering an Egyptian diplomat in Geneva in 1995.
Switzerland to cut funding for gala cultural events from 2029
This content was published on
Large-scale Swiss cultural events, such as the Locarno Film Festival, will lose state funding from 2029 as part of a cost-cutting drive by the administration.
Ideas to recover ammunition from Swiss lakes flood in
This content was published on
An appeal to the public to suggest ways to safely retrieve 8,000 tons of munitions from the bottom of Swiss lakes has yielded around 100 proposals.
This content was published on
Swiss public television SRF will axe 50 full-time positions by the beginning of next year as it aims to make CHF9 million in savings.
Explosion in global patents for transport innovations
This content was published on
The number of patents for transport innovations has exploded in the last 20 years, rising 700% to 120,000 by 2023, says WIPO.
Swiss NGO Terre des hommes loses $10m from US aid freeze
This content was published on
The Swiss-based NGO Terre des hommes is losing $10 million in annual contributions as a result of the suspension of humanitarian aid by the United States administration.
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.
Read more
More
Can Switzerland clean up the ‘dirty’ gold trade?
This content was published on
Our analysis of what the biggest global companies in Switzerland are up to. This week: dirty gold, climate change, Nestlé and looking ahead at WEF.
From Nazis to refineries: How Switzerland has handled the world’s gold
This content was published on
A new book exposes the dark history of gold laundering in Switzerland and the modern challenge of cleaning up a lucrative industry.
A death blow or a new lease on life for the responsible business initiative?
This content was published on
Our regular analysis of what the biggest global companies in Switzerland are up to. This week: parliament, illegal cocoa and palm oil deals.
Clean gold: How Switzerland could set new supply chain standards
This content was published on
Switzerland is the undisputed top dog of the global gold industry, refining a majority of the world’s gold, as well as being the leading exporter. But how seriously does the country take its responsibility to ensure sustainable mining and the protection of human rights? “This position of great global power comes with great responsibility because – here’s another thing too few people…
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.