The economy of Switzerland is one of the world's most advanced and highly-developed free-market economies. The service sector has come to play a significant economic role, particularly the Swiss banking industry and tourism. The economy of Switzerland ranked first in the world since 2015 Global Innovation Index and third in the 2020 Global Competitiveness Report. According to United Nations data for 2016, Switzerland is the third richest landlocked country in the world after Liechtenstein and Luxembourg. Together with the latter and Norway, they are the only three countries in the world with a GDP per capita (nominal) above US$70,000 that are neither island nations nor ministates.
Banking in Switzerland dates to the early eighteenth 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, along with the Swiss Alps, Swiss chocolate, watchmaking and mountaineering. Switzerland has a long, kindred 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 the 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.
Christoph Wolfram Blocher is a Swiss industrialist and politician who served as a Member of the Swiss Federal Council from 2004 to 2007. A member of the Swiss People's Party (SVP/UDC), he headed the Federal Department of Justice and Police. As an industrialist, he became wealthy as CEO and majority shareholder in the EMS-Chemie corporation, now run by his daughter, Magdalena Martullo-Blocher.
The Swiss franc is the currency and legal tender of Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It is also legal tender in the Italian exclave of Campione d'Italia which is surrounded by Swiss territory. The Swiss National Bank (SNB) issues banknotes and the federal mint Swissmint issues coins.
Roger W. Ferguson Jr. is an American economist, attorney and corporate executive who served as the 17th vice chair of the Federal Reserve from 1999 to 2006. Prior to his term as vice chairman, Ferguson appointed as a member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors since 1997. A member of the Democratic Party, Ferguson was the first African American to hold that post. After leaving the Fed, he served as president and CEO of the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America (TIAA) from 2008 to 2021. Ferguson also appointed to board of directors of several companies.
The Swiss National Bank is the central bank of Switzerland, responsible for the nation's monetary policy and the sole issuer of Swiss franc banknotes. The primary goal of its mandate is to ensure price stability, while taking economic developments into consideration.
Axel Alfred Weber is a German economist, professor, and banker. He is currently a board member and chairman of Swiss investment bank and financial services company, UBS Group AG, and has announced his resignation effective 7 April 2022.
Avinash D. Persaud born 22 June 1966 in Barbados, West Indies) is Emeritus Professor of Gresham College in the UK. He was Chairman of Intelligence Capital Ltd., a company specializing in analyzing, managing and creating financial liquidity in investment projects and portfolios. He was also the non-Executive Chairman of the London-based Elara Capital, an investment bank. Persaud was a Non-resident Senior Fellow of the Peterson Institute of International Economics, Executive Fellow of London Business School and Senior Fellow with the Caribbean Policy Research Institute and Head of its Barbados office.
Marco Piccinini is a Monegasque sport personality, businessman, and politician.
The Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, or the Geneva Graduate Institute, abbreviated IHEID, is a government-accredited postgraduate institution of higher education located in Geneva, Switzerland. The current Geneva Graduate Institute was formed by a merger between the Graduate Institute of International Studies and the Graduate Institute of Development Studies in 2008.
Alexandre Hay was a Swiss lawyer. From 1966 to 1976 he was Vice President of the Board of the Swiss National Bank. Later, from 1976 to 1987 he was President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
Tajudeen Afolabi Adeola is a Nigerian businessman and investor. He is the Founder of Guaranty Trust Bank ., a member of the Commission for Africa, as well as founder and chairman of the FATE Foundation.
Deepak Nayyar is an Indian economist and academician. He is a professor of economics at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi and Chairperson of the Board of Governors of Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) New Delhi. He has taught at the University of Oxford, the University of Sussex, the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta (IIM-C), and the New School for Social Research, New York City. He was Vice Chancellor of the University of Delhi from 2000 to 2005.
Ulrich Körner is a German-Swiss business person. In March 2021, he was named CEO Asset Management of Credit Suisse until July 2022, when he was appointed CEO of Credit Suisse AG.
Philipp Michael Hildebrand is a Swiss banker who has been serving as a vice chairman of BlackRock since 2012.
The Swiss Finance Institute (SFI) is a national center for research, doctoral training, knowledge exchange, and continuing education in the fields of banking and finance. Created in 2006 as a public–private partnership, SFI is a common initiative of the Swiss finance industry, six leading Swiss universities, and the Swiss Confederation.
İbrahim Turhan, Ph.D. was the chairman and CEO of the Istanbul Stock Exchange from 2012 to 2015 and a Member of the Turkish parliament for the governing Justice and Development Party from 2015 to 2018. He is alleged to be a member of the Gulen Movement.
Thomas J. Jordan is a Swiss economist and central banker. He is the chairman of the governing board of the Swiss National Bank, chairman of the Central Bank Counterfeit Deterrence Group, a member of the board of directors of the Bank for International Settlements, and a member of the steering committee of the Financial Stability Board.
Jean-Pierre Danthine is a Swiss-Belgian economist and deputy chairman of the Swiss National Bank from 2012 to 2015. He has published numerous articles and books.
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.
