Association of Swiss Cantonal Banks

Formerly 1-2 per canton, now a total of 24 Cantonal banks (for 26 cantons and half-cantons). Semi-governmental organizations with a state guarantee. Being closely connected to the state, most cantonal banks however comply with commercial principles in their business activities.

The objective – to promote the canton's economy, according to cantonal law. These banks are engaged in all banking businesses, with emphasis on lending/deposit, savings and mortgage business. In some cases, they are providing asset management for domestic customers.

Cantonal bank operations are largely focused on their own canton, although some of them have branches outside their canton or offices even outside the country.

Most cantonal banks are institutions under public law, with their own legal status. There are also some semi-private and private joint-stock companies.

Trade association: The Association of Swiss Cantonal Banks was founded in 1907. It acts for the category as a whole and promotes cooperation between its members.

Special features: Since the revision of the Banking Act on 1 October 1999, a cantonal guarantee has no longer been regarded as the constitutive feature of a cantonal bank. The Canton of Berne plans to phase out its cantonal guarantee in a gradual process terminating in 2012. However, it is the only canton planning to take this step. Even before the revision of the Banking Act there was no cantonal guarantee for the Banque Cantonale Vaudoise while the cantonal guarantee for the Banque Cantonale de Genève was limited. All other cantonal banks will retain an unlimited cantonal guarantee.

In 2005, Credit Suisse and Credit Suisse First Boston merged. This left only two banks in the big bank category (UBS and Credit Suisse). The two banks – UBS AG and the Credit Suisse Group together take for over 50% of the balance sheet total of all banks in Switzerland.

UBS AG is the world's leader in wealth management, and Switzerland's leading bank for individual and corporate clients. It is also working globally in investment banking and the securities business.

Credit Suisse is a leading global bank headquartered in Zurich. It is renowned for providing expert advice, holistic solutions and innovative products to a wide range of corporate and institutional clients and high-net-worth individuals globally, and retail clients in Switzerland.

The big banks cover all types of business. They include, in particular, investment banking (capital market transactions, securities trading, money market transactions, financial engineering, securities lending, consulting services for company mergers and acquisitions as well as the implementation of such operations).

These banks opperate globally, with a network of branches and subsidiaries around the world. Their legal status is private joint-stock companies.

Additional information: http://www.swissbanking.org/en/home/fs-allgemein.htm; http://www.geneva-finance.ch/en/place_fin/place_fin_ch/type_banque.

Smaller universal banks, emphasis mainly on lending/deposit business, and voluntarily restricting their activities to one region. Their advantage is customer proximity and acquaintance with local circumstances and with regional business cycles.

Most regional banks and savings banks focus on traditional interest rate business with mortgages and corporate loans, on the one hand, and customer savings and deposits, on the other hand. Regional banks and savings banks are mostly private joint-stock companies, there are also co-operatives or other legal forms.

The association of Swiss regional banks (RBA) was established in 1971, and most of the banks in this category then joined the association.M

The RBA Holding was created in 1994, its membership is decentralised and autonomous. RBA Holding services are available to assist members in back-office operations.

Clientis Group was established in 2004 as a collaborative venture by about 30 medium-sized and smaller RBA banks, together with Clientis AG. The Clientis Group is organised legally in the form of a simple partnership, with Clientis AG carrying out the executive functions.

The Raiffeisen banks have the highest number of branches in Switzerland and they are affiliated to the Swiss Union of Raiffeisen Banks. Raiffeisen Group – affiliated independent banks having strong local roots organized with co-operative lines. Almost all the business done by individual Raiffeisen offices is regional. The Swiss Union of Raiffeisen Banks operates throughout the country.

Main focus – on traditional interest rate business with mortgages & corporate loans, as well as customer savings and deposits.

Additional information: – http://www.swissbanking.org/en/home/fs-allgemein.htm; http://www.geneva-finance.ch/en/place_fin/place_fin_ch/type_banque.

The Association of Swiss Commercial and Investment Banks was founded on January 30, 1981, with the purpose of:

• acting as an interlocutor in matters of banking policy;
• defending the common interests of its members within the governing bodies and commissions of the Swiss Bankers Association;
• participating in the political debate.

There are 30 member banks whose interests are protected by the Association, with 11,000 employees (1/10 of all the bank employees in Switzerland).

Association may include any commercial bank and banks specializing in security transactions and wealth management, mostly Swiss and incorporated under Swiss (or Liechtenstein) law, provided they are also members of the Swiss Bankers Association. The Association is represented on the Board of Directors of the Swiss Bankers Association and its Executive Board. It also participates in 45 other bodies active in the banking sector.

The Association's representatives try to ensure that the regulatory environment is compatible with the needs of small and medium-sized banks, and they make every effort to create framework conditions allowing commercial and management banks to operate successfully.

Legal status: Private joint-stock company.

Geographic scope of activities: mainly domestic.

Contact:
Association of Swiss Commercial and Investment Banks
Selnaustrasse 30
Postfach
8021 Zürich

Banks that specialise in stock exchange, securities and asset management business.

Other banks

This bank group includes banks with various business objectives, including: institutes specializing in the stock exchange, securities and asset management businesses, commercial banks. As a rule, these are universal banks for which mortgage investments play a significant role, in addition to commercial loans to trade, industry and commerce, and consumer credit institutes; specializing in small loans both to private individuals and the industry.

Bank-like finance companies

This type of companies was included in SNB data collection from 1971 to 1994. After February 1995, under the revised Banking Act, there were no more bank-like companies in Switzerland, such companies were required either to apply for a banking licence or transform themselves into a finance company (which is not subject to the provisions of the Banking Act). Thus, information on bank-like finance companies was last time collected just at the end of 1994.

A bank is deemed to be foreign-controlled if foreigners with a qualified participation in the bank directly or indirectly hold more than half of its voting shares, or if they exercise a controlling interest in any other manner. Under the Banking Act, foreigners may be either individuals or legal entities.

The origin of foreign-controlled banks: Europe, predominantly EU (over 50%), Japan (around 20%).

Main fields of activity are investment banking (share of foreign assets in the balance sheet total is 70%), and asset management. In the case of asset management, the clients are usually foreign.

Business focus: many foreign-controlled banks operate in all fields of business, but some of them focus

Geographic scope of activities: International.

Legal status: Almost exclusively private joint-stock companies.

Since 1972, all foreign banks have belonged to the Association of Foreign Banks in Switzerland. Foreign banks include both the foreign-controlled banks operating under Swiss law (category 5.20) and the branches of foreign banks operating in Switzerland (category 7.00).

The foreign-controlled banks are organised in accordance with Swiss law. Generally, permits for the establishment of such banks are only granted subject to a number of additional requirements.

Most of these banks operate in the field of investment banking; some of them also focus on asset management for foreign clients.

These are international banks focused particularly on the country of origin. As in respects of their legal status, they are not legal entities in their own right, being subordinate to their parent company.

A licence is required for any foreign bank that wishes to establish a registered office, branch office or agency in Switzerland. Additional information may be found in the Ordinance on Foreign Banks in Switzerland (Foreign Bank Ordinance).

The Association of Foreign Banks in Switzerland: since 1972, includes all foreign banks represented in Switzerland. Foreign banks include both the foreign-controlled banks operating under Swiss law and the branches of foreign banks operating in Switzerland.

Swiss Private Bankers Association

Private banks are among the oldest banks in Switzerland. They have the legal form of individually owned firms, collective and limited partnerships. Private bankers are subject to unlimited liability with their personal assets. Their field of activity is asset management, chiefly for private clients. As a rule, the private banks do not publicly offer to accept savings deposits.