For more than a century, wealthy families did not simply deposit funds with Swiss banks—they sought a sanctuary. Switzerland offered what few jurisdictions could promise: neutrality in turbulent times, stability amid political swings, and a near-sacred respect for private capital and secrecy.
Switzerland’s standing as a financial sanctuary has floundered. Political gamesmanship and an increasingly aggressive compliance regime have combined to reshape the country’s once-unassailable brand. For global family offices and ultra-high-net-worth individuals who require discretion and predictability, Switzerland is no longer a viable choice.
The most dramatic rupture came in March 2023, when Credit Suisse collapsed and was forced into an emergency takeover.
Observers across Europe and the United States described the episode not as an isolated corporate failure, but as reputational damage to Swiss banking as a whole. The consolidation that followed shrank the sector’s balance-sheet footprint and concentrated systemic exposure in a single dominant institution. That may have stabilized markets in the short term. But it also reinforced the perception that Switzerland’s financial architecture is fragile.
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