What sets the Swiss financial centre apart
Switzerland’s financial centre is among the most successful and diverse in the world, combining tradition and expertise built up over generations with a pioneering spirit of innovation. The banks have both strong local roots and outstanding international networks. They play a key role in ensuring that the financial centre remains competitive and stable.
Switzerland has a world-leading financial centre that is both lucrative and innovative. Swiss banking successfully combines traditional strengths such as stability and universality of services with innovation in areas such as fintech and sustainable finance. Customers can count on a broad 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 a preferred location for foreign financial institutions because they benefit from Swiss banking’s good reputation in addition to the country’s business-friendly environment and large pool of talent.
What sets the Swiss financial centre apart
Stability is a hallmark of the Swiss financial centre. Switzerland’s solid banks, its reliable legal system and political institutions, and its sound currency make it 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 complete range of products and services for customers of every nationality and wealth category. They can thus meet the broadest possible spectrum of customer needs. Thanks to their highly trained, multilingual and open-minded staff, the banks are able to provide outstanding advice.
Everything the Swiss banks do is driven by respect for the individual and the ethical and moral standards of the social systems in which they operate. These standards must be respected and defended. The Swiss banks set the bar very high when it comes to their conduct towards their customers, society, their staff 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, Swiss banking makes the case for practically oriented rules and adheres to global standards.
With the most talented, capable and ambitious staff, tried-and-tested and innovative methods, and the best available systems, the Swiss banks ensure the very highest standards of quality. They are founded on the age-old tradition of the Swiss financial centre but also open and flexible in addressing the changing needs of their customers and society.
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 competitive, diversified and efficient banking sector has always depended on liberal, 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. The banks need to be able to offer services that are tailored to customers’ needs in every target market, which is why the Swiss Bankers Association is committed to improving market access on an ongoing basis.
Promotion of the financial centre
The Swiss Bankers Association advocates for the Swiss financial centre both at home and abroad. Various promotional activities are aimed at progressively strengthening the financial centre’s profile and reputation.
- Promotion at home: The Swiss financial centre is a cornerstone of the nation’s economy. (see “Facts & Figures”). The banks are among the biggest employers in Switzerland, and the banking apprenticeship is by far the most popular form of commercial vocational training. The varied and competitive banking sector provides individuals and companies in Switzerland with a broad range of high-quality services. Customers’ confidence in the banks is extremely high. Promotional activities within Switzerland are aimed at consistently conveying the importance of the banks for the country and strengthening the financial centre’s reputation. To this end, the Swiss Bankers Association hosts its own events in all regions of Switzerland and fosters partnerships with a variety of conferences and other events. It is also actively involved in recruitment fairs, where it presents a range of careers and training opportunities in the banking sector in collaboration with regional banking associations and other partners.
- Promotion abroad: The focus of promotional activities conducted abroad is on international visits under the leadership of the Federal Council, together with delegations of industry representatives. The objective here is to improve trade relations with key markets and increase awareness of the advantages the Swiss financial centre offers. Following the first promotional trip to Asia in 2017, further trips have been made to the Middle East and South America in 2018 and China in 2019. The SBA also works together with other financial market representatives on the information platform finance.swiss, which is run by the federal government and showcases Switzerland’s status as a premier location for a wide variety of financial services. It is intended to raise global awareness of the Swiss financial centre and strengthen its international competitiveness.