Category Archive: 3) Swiss Markets and News

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Investec is a distinctive Specialist Bank and Asset Manager. We provide a diverse range of financial products and services to a niche client base in three principal markets, the United Kingdom, South Africa and Australia, as well as certain other geographies. Investec’s strategic goals are motivated by the desire to develop an efficient and integrated business on an international scale through the active pursuit of clearly established core competencies in the group’s principal business areas.

Banking Climate Alliance ends activities

The Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA), the UN's carbon neutrality programme for the banking sector, says it will cease its activities. Swiss bank UBS withdrew last August. The NZBA was launched in 2021 as part of the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP-FI) to encourage banks to take concrete steps to reduce the carbon footprint …

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SWISS ‘eyes cheaper Indian flight crews’

Swiss International Air Lines is looking to hire Indian cabin crews to the Canadian city of Montreal, with the aim of reducing costs. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox Their salaries amount to CHF580-950 per month, CH Media newspapers reported, citing sources within the company. "We are constantly evaluating different options …

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Company bankruptcies on the rise in Switzerland

There have been significantly more bankruptcies in Switzerland this year. The construction, catering and retail sectors in particular have suffered. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox Company bankruptcies climbed by 19.5% from January to September compared to the same period last year, according to the economic information service Crif on Thursday. …

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US delays pharma tariffs to push for more drug pricing deals

According to government circles, the new tariffs on pharmaceutical imports into the US announced by US President Donald Trump for October 1 will not be imposed after all. This was announced by a high-ranking government official to the German Press Agency. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox Instead, tariffs are now …

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Unlocking climate secrets frozen for 1.2 million years #switzerland #climatechange

Swiss scientists are drilling deep into Antarctic ice that is more than 1.2 million years old to reveal how Earth’s climate has changed over time. By analysing ancient air bubbles, the team at the University of Bern is uncovering greenhouse gas levels and glacial cycles from long before human influence. These discoveries could help us understand natural climate shifts and offer powerful insight into today’s accelerating change and where our planet...

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US court dismisses Credit Suisse lawsuit against Switzerland

A United States court says Switzerland is not liable for losses incurred by creditors in connection with so-called AT1 bonds in the takeover of Credit Suisse by UBS. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox This was decided by a US District Court in New York. The Swiss Federal Department of Finance …

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Pfizer deal gives Novartis and Roche stock boost

Pharmaceutical stocks rebounded in a big way on the Zurich stock exchange in the wake of a tariff agreement reached by Pfizer in the United States. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox Long under pressure due to intentions to regulate drug prices in the US, companies are breathing a sigh of … Continue...

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More than a third of Swiss companies report irregularities

More than one third of Swiss companies were affected by illegal and unethical behaviour within their organisation or in their supply chain last year. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox However, Swiss companies are less affected than average. This is the conclusion of the Whistleblowing 2025 report published today by the …

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Ex-US climate ambassador Kerry urges more green investing

Former United States climate ambassador John Kerry sees energy transition as a great opportunity for the economy and investors. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox "It is the biggest economic transformation since the industrial revolution," he told the Building Bridges sustainability conference in Geneva. + Swiss finance sector told to ‘green’ …

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UBS CEO Ermotti: ‘we never threatened to leave Switzerland’

Sergio Ermotti, CEO of Swiss bank UBS, says he is confident that a good solution will be found regarding the bank’s capital requirements in Switzerland. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox The company addressed journalists on the day of the presentation of its official response to the consultation launched by the …

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Zermatt restaurant operators fined for violating Covid-19 measures

Last Thursday, the Valais Cantonal Court sentenced the three operators of the Walliserkanne restaurant in Zermatt. They were found guilty of repeated obstruction of an official act. They received fines and suspended sentences. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox The sentences relate mainly to incidents that occurred in 2021. The defendants …

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Swiss central bank makes sharp increase in foreign exchange purchases

Foreign exchange purchases by the Swiss National Bank (SNB) increased significantly in the second quarter. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox Between April and June, the institution bought the equivalent of CHF5.1 billion ($6.4 billion), according to statistics published on Tuesday, as usual at the end of the quarter following the …

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More than one third of firms in Switzerland are founded by foreigners

More than one in three new companies in Switzerland will have been founded by foreigners by 2025. According to an analysis by the Institute for Young Entrepreneurs (IFJ), 37.5% of the total 40,867 new entries in the commercial register between January and September were made by people without a Swiss passport. +Get the most important …

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Price of gold reaches record amid fears of US government shutdown

The price of an ounce of gold continued to rise on Tuesday morning. After reaching $3,850 on Monday night, it rose to $3,870 on Tuesday, buoyed by the risk of budgetary paralysis in the United States, the so-called “shutdown”. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox At around 7:35am on the last …

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Swiss economic sentiment improves but remains subdued

Expectations for the Swiss economy remain subdued, according to the KOF Economic Barometer, which rose slightly in September but still signals caution. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox The economic barometer compiled by the KOF Swiss Economic Institute rose to 98 points in September. In August, it had fallen to its …

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UBS criticises Swiss proposal to change capital adequacy requirements

The major bank UBS has criticised a draft amendment to the Federal Capital Adequacy Ordinance in Switzerland. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox According to UBS, the “disproportionate” proposals for the treatment of the bank’s own software and deferred tax assets would destroy around $11 billion (CHF8.7 billion) in capital at …

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Trade unions push back on sale of Nestlé Waters

A demonstration against the proposed sale of Nestlé Waters to a partner brought together around a hundred people at the company headquarters in Vevey on Monday. Trade union delegations came from seven European countries to make their voices heard. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox The demonstrators had travelled from France, …

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Novartis launches direct sales platform in US in bid to lower drug prices

Novartis is starting a new chapter in US sales: On Monday, the pharmaceutical company announced that it will sell its psoriasis drug Cosentyx (secukinumab) directly to cash-paying patients in the US via a direct-to-patient (DTP) platform. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox This platform is set to launch on November 1, …

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Switzerland recorded 164 cyber attacks in last 6 months

The first six months since the introduction of the obligation to report cyber attacks on critical infrastructure have ended on a positive note. This was reported today in a statement by the Federal Office for Cyber Security (FCOS). +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox In this time period, 164 attacks were …

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Swiss central bank explores link to Eurozone instant payment system

The Swiss National Bank (SNB) and the European Central Bank (ECB) are examining the possibility of linking the instant payment systems of the two areas. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox The two entities have started an exploratory phase to connect the IP service and the SIC system with the Eurosystem’s …

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