What sets the Swiss financial centre apart
Switzerland’s financial centre is among the most successful and diverse in the world. Its banks combine extensive international networks with strong regional roots. They play a key role in ensuring that the financial centre remains competitive and stable.
Switzerland is home to a world-leading financial centre that is both lucrative and innovative. Swiss banking successfully couples traditional strengths such as stability and a broad service offering with innovation in areas such as fintech and sustainable finance. Customers can count on a wide selection of high-quality financial services, the legal certainty and stable conditions Switzerland offers, the expertise and sense of responsibility that the banks and their staff embody, as well as the quality of the advice and services they provide. Switzerland is also a preferred location for financial institutions from abroad, which benefit from the strong reputation of Swiss banking, a business-friendly environment and large pool of talent.
What sets the Swiss financial centre apart
Stability is a hallmark of the Swiss financial centre. Sound banks, a reliable legal system and political institutions, and a stable currency make Switzerland a safe haven for individuals and companies from all over the world. While Swiss banks operate globally, they remain firmly rooted in their home market.
Switzerland’s banks are culturally diverse and offer a comprehensive range of products and services for customers of every nationality and wealth category. They respond to differing customer requirements with high-quality advice delivered by an exceptionally well trained, multilingual and globally minded workforce.
Swiss banks adhere to exacting standards of conduct towards customers, their staff, society and the environment. They have established binding rules governing how their day-to-day business is continuously assessed, reviewed and improved. In its dealings with international organisations, the Swiss Bankers Association makes the case for practically oriented regulation and complies with global standards.
With highly qualified and ambitious staff, methods from the tried and tested to the innovative, and state-of-the-art systems, Swiss banks ensure the very highest standards of quality. They combine tradition with openness and flexibility, adapting continually to the changing needs of their customers and society.
The Swiss financial centre in figures
Switzerland is home to one of the world’s leading financial centres. In all, some 235 universal, cantonal, Raiffeisen, regional, private and savings banks manage assets totalling around CHF 8,400 billion. The sec-tor makes a significant contribution to the success of the Swiss economy, directly employing almost 160,000 people (full-time equivalents), providing indispensable services for individuals and companies, generating 16% of service exports and accounting for some 5.5% of the country’s total value added.
Attractive operating conditions and open markets
Switzerland fosters attractive operating conditions and optimum trading relationships with the rest of the world, ensuring that it remains a leading, modern, global financial centre.
- Liberal environment: A diversified and efficient banking sector has always depended on business-friendly frameworks and will continue to do so. With this in mind, the Swiss Bankers Association lobbies for favourable taxation as well as liberal, effective regulation guided by the principles of proportionality and competitiveness.
- Open markets: The Swiss financial centre leads the world in cross-border wealth management. Good market access is thus vital to its export-oriented banks and will remain so going forward, enabling them to offer services tailored to customers’ needs in every target market. The Swiss Bankers Association therefore lobbies consistently for improved market access.
Promoting the financial centre
The Swiss Bankers Association advocates for the Swiss financial centre both at home and abroad. Its broad spectrum of activities helps to further enhance the financial centre’s profile and reputation.
- At home: The Swiss financial centre is a cornerstone of the nation’s economy. The banks are among the biggest employers in Switzerland, and the banking apprenticeship is the most popular form of commercial vocational training. The diversified and competitive banking sector provides individuals and companies in Switzerland with an extensive range of high-quality services. Customers’ confidence in the banks is extremely high. The Swiss Bankers Association’s activities within Switzerland consistently highlight the banks’ importance to the country and seek to enhance the financial centre’s reputation. The Association hosts its own events in all national regions, partners with conferences and is actively involved in recruitment fairs, showcasing the wide array of training and career opportunities in the banking sector.
- Abroad: Here, activities include regular visits to other countries, sometimes accompanied by bank delegations and government representatives. These improve trading relationships with our most important markets and further raise awareness of the advantages the financial centre offers. On our platforms and channels, we publish information about Switzerland as a premier location for comprehensive financial services. Our aim in all cases is to focus global attention on the Swiss financial centre and boost its international competitiveness.