Banking in Switzerland dates to the early 18th century through Switzerland's merchant trade and has, over the centuries, grown into a complex, regulated, and international industry. Banking is seen as emblematic of Switzerland. The country has a long history of banking secrecy and client confidentiality reaching back to the early 1700s. Starting as a way to protect wealthy European banking interests, Swiss banking secrecy was codified in 1934 with the passage of a landmark federal law, the Federal Act on Banks and Savings Banks. These laws, which were used to protect assets of persons being persecuted by Nazi authorities, have also been used by people and institutions seeking to illegally evade taxes, hide assets, or generally commit financial crime.
Julius Bär Group AG, known alternatively as Julius Baer Group Ltd., is a private banking corporation founded and based in Switzerland. Headquartered in Zürich, it is among the older Swiss banking institutions. In terms of assets under management, Julius Baer is number two among Swiss banks after UBS and the biggest pure-play private bank.
Banque Cantonale de Genève (BCGE) is a limited company established under Swiss public law, resulting from the merger of the Caisse d'Épargne de la République et Canton de Genève and the Banque Hypothécaire du Canton de Genève. It is one of the 24 cantonal banks.
The Swiss Bankers Association is a professional organization of Swiss financial institutions.
The Pictet Group, known as Pictet, is a Swiss multinational private bank and financial services company founded in Switzerland. Headquartered in Geneva, it is one of the largest Swiss banks and primarily offers services in wealth management, asset management, and asset servicing, to private clients and institutions.
Banque Bonhôte & Cie is a Swiss private bank founded in 1815 in Neuchâtel. It is active in the wealth and asset management sector.
Baron Rodolphe Hottinger is a Swiss banker of the House of Hottinguer. His ancestor, Jean-Conrad Hottinger, created the Bank Rougemont, Hottinger & Cie. in 1786. In 1799, he added a 'u' to the family name, to preserve the Germanic pronunciation; see also House of Hottinguer.
The Lombard Odier Group is an independent Swiss banking group based in Geneva. Its operations are organised into three divisions: private banking, asset management, and IT and back and middle office services for other financial institutions. In 2022, the bank had total client assets of CHF 300 billion, which makes it one of the biggest players in the Swiss private banking sector.
Bordier & Cie is a Swiss private banker founded in 1844 in Geneva and active in wealth management for private clients. It is the last French-speaking private banker in Switzerland, headed by three partners with unlimited responsibility on their own assets. The institution holds a banking license in Switzerland, Turks and Caicos Islands and Singapore and has branches in the United Kingdom, France and Uruguay.
CBH Compagnie Bancaire Helvétique SA was created in 1975 as a brokerage company known as stock and commodities services. In 1991, it obtained full banking license in Switzerland. The group currently employs approximately 260 employees. The current general manager is Philippe Cordonier. The bank is located in Geneva in the Canton of Geneva in Switzerland, and specialized in private banking and asset management.
The Bank J. Safra Sarasin Ltd is a Swiss private bank, founded in 1841 and headquartered in Basel. It is currently owned by the Brazilian J. Safra Group, and was formed in its present state in 2013, when Safra Group acquired Bank Sarasin & Co. Ltd, merging it with its Bank Jacob Safra Switzerland subsidiary.
Rothschild & Co is a multinational private and merchant bank, headquartered in London, England. It is the flagship of the Rothschild banking group controlled by the British and French branches of the Rothschild family.
Mirabaud is an international banking and financial group based in Geneva, Switzerland. Founded in 1819, it gradually developed into the third largest private bank in the city.
The Swiss Private Bankers Association is a Swiss trade association made up of banking institutions that meet the legal definition of a private banker according to Swiss law. Based in Geneva, Switzerland, and currently has six members.
The REYL Group, styled REYL Intesa Sanpaolo, is a financial services company founded in Geneva in 1973 by Dominique REYL. REYL provides financial advisory and investment services to private and institutional clients.
Dukascopy Bank is a Swiss online bank which provides online and mobile trading, banking and financial services. Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, it has offices in Riga, Kyiv, Moscow, Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Dubai and Tokyo, with over 300 employees.
Bank Cler is a Basel-based Swiss bank founded in 1927. The bank's main area of activity is retail banking for private individuals and small and medium-sized companies. Until it became a wholly owned subsidiary of Basler Kantonalbank in 2019 the bank's shares were listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange.
ONE Swiss Bank SA is a publicly traded private bank and wealth management firm based in Geneva. One Swiss Bank specializes in private banking and tailored asset & wealth management. It provides its services to private and institutional clients across Switzerland and the world. The bank was founded in 2004 by Bénédict Hentsch. Hentsch's bank changed its name to GS Banque in 2014 and merged with Banque Profil de Gestion and Banca Arner, forming One Swiss Bank in 2021. The firm currently has CHF 5.3 billion of assets under management.
