Swiss Post Office bounces back from pandemic difficulties

The pandemic has boosted the number of parcel deliveries in Switzerland. © Keystone / Ennio Leanza

The Swiss Post Office more than doubled profits to CHF457 million ($493 million) last year as it was less affected by pandemic restrictions.

The group’s financial arm, PostFinance, recorded a CHF272 million result, up from CHF162 million in 2020. This was achieved despite a fall in customer numbers, the amount of money they held at PostFinance and the continued negative interest rate environment.

The postal service is seeing a decline in the number of letters being delivered but a rise in the volume of parcels. It is also facing increasing competition from digital communication services.

Managers have mooted plans to revamp the group by 2030, including a doubling of its parcel sorting infrastructure. A more contentious proposal is to limit letter deliveries to just three days a week.

Unless changes are implemented, the Post Office would have to rely on public subsidies to exist from 2028, CEO Roberto Cirillo said earlier this month.

On Thursday, the group said that CHF4 billion will be invested into various initiatives by the end of 2024.

The Post office traditional bus service ended 2021 CHF18 million in the black, but this was only achieved through government subsidies during the Covid-19 pandemic.