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Cosmic magnifying glass reveals black hole details

This content was published on Dec 15, 2008 Scientists from the Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne were part of a European Space Organisation (ESO) team that employed a magnification effect known as macrolensing, which uses a galaxy as a natural telescope. That effect, combined with the ESO’s Very Large Telescope, provided them with a level of detail 1,000 times greater than the…

Swiss banks add up cost of investment scam

This content was published on Dec 15, 2008 Two banks have admitted getting their fingers burnt while speculation is intensifying that other financial institutions have lost up to SFr5 billion in the Bernard Madoff Investment Securities scam. The full extent of the global fraud, masterminded by former Nasdaq chairman Bernard Madoff, was still emerging on Monday after the US authorities intervened on Thursday.…

Financial crisis boosts Swiss gold production

This content was published on Dec 14, 2008 The staff at the Argor-Heraeus company in the southern town of Mendrisio are putting in overtime to produce gold bars for people turning their backs on the financial markets. “I’ve never experienced anything like this in my whole career,” Erhard Oberle, chief executive of the firm for the past 20 years, told swissinfo. He said…

Another Swiss bank admits Madoff exposure

This content was published on Dec 13, 2008 Reichmuth Matterhorn said in a statement that it had investments in hedge funds associated with the Wall Street trader of around SFr385 million ($327 million). On Friday, wealth management bank, Bénédict Hentsch, said it had entrusted Madoff’s investment company with SFr56 million of its clients’ assets. The Le Temps newspaper reported that hedge funds and…

Mobutu assets stay frozen as legalities begin

This content was published on Dec 12, 2008 The assets were set to be returned to Mobutu’s family on December 15 but Switzerland agreed to keep them frozen for another two months after the Congolese government launched legal proceedings to determine their origin. The prime minister of Congo confirmed on December 9 his country’s wish to recuperate the assets, after Switzerland offered to…

Bilateral accords bring good fortune for firms

This content was published on Dec 12, 2008 The labour treaty in particular has helped boost the Swiss gross domestic product, according to an economiesuisse study released on Friday on the impact of the bilateral agreements on the Swiss economy. The findings show no negative repercussions on the job market as a result of the treaty and that could go some way towards…

Zurich agrees to pay penalty to US regulator

This content was published on Dec 12, 2008 The SEC had complained that the group had artificially inflated performance figures of its reinsurance unit, Zurich Re, which was spun off as Converium and last year taken over by Scor of France. The US regulator argued that as a result of the action, Zurich managed to book “a significant windfall” in 2001 at the…

Central bank acts again as recession looms

This content was published on Dec 11, 2008 The rate was lowered by 50 basis points as the bank insisted it would take further economic stimulus measures and said monetary policy was under control. The new three-month Libor (London Interbank Offered Rate) target range was set at 0-1 per cent with a target of 0.5 per cent. The SNB once again kept pace…

Scientists find family of stress-related genes

This content was published on Dec 11, 2008 Didier Trono, lead author of the study, found that a group of genes dubbed KRAB-ZFP allows organisms to absorb and manage stress. Without those genes, creatures have a hard time adapting to external events. The findings were published on Thursday in the online journal “Neuron” and open new avenues for medical treatment. “Nature gives us…

Government presents its new year resolutions

This content was published on Dec 11, 2008 President Pascal Couchepin announced the outline to the Senate on Thursday, keeping with the government’s tradition of presenting political goals in early December for the following year. Priorities include underlining the importance of measures designed to promote economic growth and free-trade accords that were put in place in 2004. That includes accompanying measures to help…

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Cosmic magnifying glass reveals black hole details

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Swiss banks add up cost of investment scam

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Financial crisis boosts Swiss gold production

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Another Swiss bank admits Madoff exposure

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Mobutu assets stay frozen as legalities begin

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Bilateral accords bring good fortune for firms

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Zurich agrees to pay penalty to US regulator

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Central bank acts again as recession looms

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Scientists find family of stress-related genes

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Government presents its new year resolutions

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