Switzerland Today
Dear Swiss Abroad,
The heat remains one of Switzerland's biggest stories. I have to admit, I chose to work from home today. Our office is essentially a glasshouse, while my partially underground apartment is around 10 degrees cooler than the outside temperature.
And while many of us are simply uncomfortable, the exceptionally dry summer is having far-reaching consequences for wildlife, agriculture and forests.
Sunny regards from Bern,
According to Mauro Hermann, a climatologist at MeteoSwiss, 2026 saw one of the driest springs nationwide since records began. “The current situation bears a strong resemblance to the exceptional summers of 1976, 2003 and 2018,” he says.
Along with the heat comes growing concern about drought and its impact on rivers, lakes, forests and agriculture. The driest year on record for Swiss soil moisture was 2022. But according to federal technology institute ETH Zurich climatologist Sonia Seneviratne, conditions are already “significantly drier than at the same point in 2022”. If current weather patterns continue, this summer could be even worse.
Almost every canton has now established crisis teams or specialist task forces to monitor the drought. Even regions normally spared prolonged dry spells are introducing restrictions. In Fahrwangen, canton Aargau, residents can be fined up to CHF2,000 ($2,478) for watering lawns, washing cars or operating ornamental fountains.
The consequences for agriculture and wildlife are becoming increasingly serious. Crops including potatoes, maize and sugar beet are still growing during the summer months, but many farmers fear reduced harvests. Pastures are already drying out and some livestock may once again have to be culled, as happened during the 2022 drought.
Swiss Farmers’ Union vice-president and Swiss People’s Party parliamentarian Alois Huber told Swiss public broadcaster SRF he may have to send some animals to slaughter because no more fodder is growing on his south-facing slopes. Many farmers say their cattle have already begun eating winter hay supplies.
Fish populations are also under pressure as rivers and lakes heat up and water levels fall. Fishing has been suspended in several regions, while authorities are asking swimmers to avoid sensitive areas to reduce further stress on aquatic wildlife.
As aridity increases, so does the risk of forest fires. Risk levels 3 and 4 are already in force across large parts of Switzerland, and in some areas of Valais and Graubünden, the highest risk level 5 has been declared.
Swiss banking, cryptocurrency, a Russian banker, a Nigerian criminal network and an alleged mole inside the Federal Office of Police (Fedpol): new investigations into the Swiss Remit case reveal alleged links with Russian pirate banks, against the backdrop of an international money laundering investigation.
Swiss Remit was a Zurich-based money transfer company whose business model allowed customers to deposit cash, transfer money internationally and exchange funds into cryptocurrencies – the business model was virtually tailor-made for money laundering, writes the Tages-Anzeiger.
At the centre of investigations is Russian banker Sergei S., who allegedly managed the Russian bank Anelik RU, and took control of Swiss Remit in 2020. According to the Tages-Anzeiger, millions of francs are suspected of having flowed through shell companies to finance Russian fighters in eastern Ukraine.
In 2021, a whistleblower alerted both cantonal and federal authorities that Sergei S. was covertly financing Russian fighters in Donetsk and attempting to fraudulently obtain a Swiss residence permit via a fictitious employment contract. But despite this, the case sat with authorities for years.
In a twist in the story, prosecutors then charged the whistleblower with defamation in 2025. The trial ended with an acquittal at the Zurich district court.
In February 2026, Greek authorities revoked the licence of a subsidiary of Swiss Remit with immediate effect due to serious breaches, “relating, on the one hand, to the operation of payment institutions and, on the other, to the prevention and combating of money laundering and terrorist financing”, wrote the Bank of Greece.
Swiss Remit said that it operated branches in more than 100 countries. Its Swiss offices were located on Zurich’s Langstrasse, in Kleinbasel, in Bern’s old town and in Geneva’s Paquis district. Following coordinated raids in April, investigators allege Swiss Remit also laundered money for Black Axe, a Nigerian organised crime group involved in human trafficking, drug trafficking and cybercrime. Twenty-one people, including Sergi S., an alleged drug lord and a suspected mole within Fedpol, were arrested in Switzerland and two additional individuals allegedly connected to the case were arrested in Nigeria.
Around 800 Swiss citizens are registered as living in Venezuela. One Swiss Abroad there says his family only survived the disaster due to their annual summer travels to Switzerland.
Hans Peter Zingg along with his wife Alvis has lived in Venezuela for almost 40 years. They return to Switzerland every summer, where Zingg works at the Brienz Rothorn Bahn in canton Bern.
In an interview with Blick, he says he considered his home in Caraballeda as his paradise: an ocean view, two swimming pools and palm trees in the garden. The Italian architect had once proudly said that the building had been built “for eternity.” The foundations extended 40 meters into the ground. The architect himself lived there until his death.
Today, it is rubble.
Zingg learnt of the earthquake while celebrating his brother’s 60th birthday over pizza in Switzerland. Two earthquakes, with magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5, struck 39 seconds apart, mainly affecting northern Venezuela, where Caraballeda is located.
The death toll has now surpassed 3,800, with more than 16,700 injured and many still missing. According to Zingg, government assistance has been virtually non-existent. Residents are paying for excavators themselves rather than waiting for official help. Many people in Venezuela are criticising what they see as a slow response from the authorities.
Immediately after the earthquakes, Zingg’s boss offered him the opportunity to extend his stay in Switzerland. But he refused. “My home is Venezuela. That’s where I built my life. That’s where my friends and family are. I have to go back,” Zingg tells the Blick.
Swiss Solidarity raised over CHF10 million ($12.5 million) in donations for the earthquake victims in Venezuela. Tens of thousands of people from all parts of Switzerland took part in the fundraising day last week, Swiss Solidarity reported.
The national day of solidarity on June 2 was opened by Swiss President Guy Parmelin. Together with the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation and private radio stations, it called for solidarity with the people of Venezuela, where severe earthquakes in June have claimed thousands of lives.
Houses, roads, hospitals and other vital infrastructure have been destroyed or severely damaged, Swiss Solidarity stated in its appeal. The humanitarian needs are enormous: medical care, emergency shelter, clean drinking water and food are urgently needed, as are everyday essentials.
Swiss cantons and municipalities also pledged aid. Bern’s cantonal government approved CHF250,000 for the earthquake victims, while the city of Geneva is providing CHF50,000 in emergency aid.
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