Covid-19 did not widen Swiss wealth inequalities, at least initially
In 2020, the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic, the wealth held by the richest Swiss did not increase in proportional terms, according to new data.
This stagnation put an end to the upward trend observed for many years, the Federal Tax Administration (FTA) said on Friday.
Since the end of the financial crisis, the proportion of wealth held by the richest groups of taxpayers had risen steadily.
+ The data on wealth distribution and inequality in Switzerland
The pandemic thus did not, as feared, negative exacerbate this trend, the FTA data shows. In overall terms, taxpayers at the lower end of the scale did not see their wealth deplete due to drops in income, while the richest taxpayers did not manage to build up big additional savings because of the limited consumption opportunities.
But the distribution of taxable wealth in Switzerland remains highly uneven. In 2020, the richest 1% held 44.8% of net taxable wealth. The richest 10% held 77.8%. This inequality is particularly marked in the cantons of Central Switzerland.
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