Banking & Fintech

Credit Suisse called to account for Abacha dealings

This content was published on Dec 6, 2000 The federal banking commission on Wednesday confirmed that it had filed a formal complaint against Credit Suisse for accepting millions of dollars in deposits belonging to Abacha and his family and associates. It said the case had been referred to the supervisory body of the Swiss Bankers Association, which enforces self-regulation in the banking industry.…

WTO criticises Swiss farm subsidies

This content was published on Dec 6, 2000 In the report released on Wednesday, the WTO said Switzerland’s efforts to liberalise the agricultural sector had been “unsatisfactory”. It said farmers were still excessively protected. The report notes that reforms initiated in 1993 had led to less state intervention in agriculture, but had not resulted in any significant cut in subsidies. It said state…

Swiss banks lead Europe’s online banking

This content was published on Dec 6, 2000 In a study published on Wednesday, Forrester Research, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, ranked the French Banque Directe and BNP Paribas in third and fourth positions. “The Swiss banks shine through with comprehensive, integrated offerings,” said Brian Gross, an analyst at Forrester’s European headquarters in Amsterdam. “Consistently integrating a gamut of products and services with useful…

UMTS auction unlikely to boost federal coffers

This content was published on Dec 6, 2000 The first round of bidding for Switzerland’s Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) kicked off on Wednesday morning, with Switzerland’s largest operator, Swisscom, bidding for a licence, along with Orange, Telefonica of Spain and Sunrise/diAx. The federal communications office has planned eight rounds of bidding on Wednesday, and a further eight on Thursday. However, the office’s…

Swiss and American experts discuss white-collar crime

This content was published on Dec 5, 2000 Government officials and financial experts from the private sector took part in the talks, which focused on bankers’ “know your customer” guidelines and measures to combat money laundering. The participants discussed cooperation between the two countries’ judicial authorities and the security forces. They looked at ways in which new technologies in the financial sectors are…

Ogi launches Year of Volunteers

This content was published on Dec 5, 2000 Addressing an audience of 700 people at the launch of the campaign on Tuesday in Bern, Ogi said Swiss people had a long tradition of carrying out voluntary activities. He added that it was the responsibility of all citizens to become involved: “If everyone were to offer some of their services voluntarily, society would be…

Christmas shopping in full swing

This content was published on Dec 5, 2000 As in previous years, electronic goods are leading Christmas sales. But this year, quality is playing a bigger role in the choices made by shoppers, the main stores agree. Ernst Pfenniger, a spokesman for the Globus group, said sales over the first weekend of Advent were cause for celebration. Although they still hadn’t reached their…

First “sexed” cattle born in Switzerland

This content was published on Dec 5, 2000 The first “sexed” calves born in Switzerland were “introduced” to the public on Tuesday, in what scientists are describing as a revolution in the breeding of farm animals. The technique was developed in the United States by the firm XY Inc., and has been licensed to the Swiss biotechnology company, BIG X. Using XY Inc’s…

Swiss residents counted in most expensive census ever

This content was published on Dec 5, 2000 Everyone living in Switzerland on Tuesday, December 5, is required to complete the census. For the first time, Swiss citizens have the option of filing their details on the Internet. The federal office for statistics said that by Monday 160,000 people – corresponding to 65,000 households – had availed themselves of the new service. More…

UMTS auction likely to be a cheap deal

This content was published on Dec 5, 2000 Most observers agree it be an anti-climax, because it is unlikely to raise anything like the revenues received in auctions in other European countries. There are only four companies bidding for the four Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) licences, so it is not expected that the bidders will have to pay much more than the…

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