Archive – Banking & Fintech

Switzerland gears up for euro

This content was published on Dec 31, 2001 Though the country is not in the Euro zone, a number of financial institutions and retailers have announced they will accept the new currency as an alternative to the Swiss franc. The following is a brief guide to where the euro is welcomed in Switzerland: Swiss Federal Railways From January 1st, ticket offices at all…

Border banks have euro well in hand

This content was published on Dec 31, 2001 The Swiss city of Basel borders both Germany and France – so preparing for the euro’s arrival there has been of crucial importance. The euro, which comes to life in the form of notes and coins at the start of the year, has been a tradable reality since 1998 with many local Basel companies already…

Passion for pasta pays off for Italian-born chef

This content was published on Dec 31, 2001 He came to Switzerland 37 year ago, making his home in the central Swiss canton of Lucerne. After working in the hotel business for years, he opened his own restaurant and a speciality pasta production facility in Ebikon. He told swissinfo that he originally came to Switzerland just to learn German. “I thought I might…

Swiss banks ready for e-day

This content was published on Dec 31, 2001 Even though Switzerland remains outside the eurozone its banks and financial institutions have been preparing with gusto for the advent of the new currency. The launch of euro notes and coins on January 1 means that euroland participants will surround Switzerland as the 12 participating euro states give up their national “legacy” currencies. In the…

Report suggests Swiss know little about champagne

This content was published on Dec 30, 2001 According to research undertaken by the editor of the wine magazine, “Vinum”, Swiss people are very well informed about wine “but know nothing about champagne”. “Your average Swiss is the sort of person who would order a Dom Pérignon because he has heard that it is the stuff James Bond drinks,” Rolf Bichsel suggests in…

Thurgau looks north for new investment

This content was published on Dec 30, 2001 Thurgau, a medium-sized canton in the north-east of the country, is nicknamed “Cider-India” – a reference to its unspoilt countryside and the historic predominance of agriculture in the region’s economy. Agriculture and forestry, however, currently cover just 10 per cent of Thurgau’s economic activity, while industry accounts for 40 per cent and services 50 per…

Tunnelling for culture

This content was published on Dec 30, 2001 When work on them is finished, the new 57-kilometre Gotthard and 35-kilometre Lötschberg tunnels will dramatically shorten the travel time by rail between northern and southern Europe. They will also mark a major step in moves to divert transalpine heavy goods traffic from road to rail, thus making freight transport safer and much more environment-friendly.…

Swiss chemical firms put profits first, study finds

This content was published on Dec 30, 2001 Switzerland’s 20th century pharmaceutical giants – Ciba, Geigy, Sandoz (since merged to form Novartis) and Roche – have traditionally kept tight-lipped about their wartime past. But that changed when the firms were ordered to open their archives to an Independent Commission of Experts (ICE), set up in 1996 to probe Switzerland’s wartime past. The study…

Bern shrugs off provincial image to attract business

This content was published on Dec 30, 2001 Bern’s Economic Development Agency has two main goals: to attract new investment from abroad and to help businesses already established to grow and create more jobs. Like development agencies across the country, Bern’s agency has a limited budget and focuses on a few economic targets. “We have chosen to concentrate on four main sectors,” says…

The year in sound: Sunseekers

This content was published on Dec 29, 2001 The “Spirit of Bike” project was a brainchild of the Biel Engineering School, which designed the revolutionary battery-powered vehicle before finding ten cyclists prepared to take turns riding the bike more than 3,000 kilometres from Darwin to Adelaide. Click on the link below to hear more

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Switzerland gears up for euro

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Border banks have euro well in hand

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Passion for pasta pays off for Italian-born chef

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Swiss banks ready for e-day

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Report suggests Swiss know little about champagne

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Thurgau looks north for new investment

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Tunnelling for culture

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Swiss chemical firms put profits first, study finds

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Bern shrugs off provincial image to attract business

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The year in sound: Sunseekers

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