Finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter has repeated calls for banks and their holdings in subsidiaries abroad to hold more equity. She argued that more equity capital would make it easier to wind up a bank in an emergency. The aim of the state is to limit risk. UBS’s balance sheet, for example, is double Switzerland's GDP, Keller-Sutter said on Monday...

Last year, the Swiss Competition Commission (COMCO) conducted 27 investigations and initiated 17 preliminary investigations. Its most recent decision was to set telecoms firm Swisscom a deadline and fine the company more than CHF18 million ($19.7 million) over a fibre-optic dispute. As a result, COMCO has ensured competition in the use of the Swisscom...

Although Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) achieved higher revenue at the start of the year, it suffered a dip in profits. Operating profit fell to CHF30.7 million ($33.6 million) in the first three months of 2024, the Lufthansa subsidiary announced on Tuesday. In the previous year, it posted an operating profit of CHF78.4 million after returning...

Switzerland should do away with “restrictive” animal testing. On Monday, five organisations submitted a petition in Bern with over 40,000 signatures in favour of "pain-free animal" scientific research. According to a press release, Switzerland should become a model for innovative, effective, and pain-free scientific research. The animal protection organisations,...

Two petitions signed by around 45,000 people are calling on the Federal Council and parliament to secure funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA). The non-governmental organisation Amnesty International Switzerland submitted the petitions in Bern on Monday with a campaign entitled "Humanitarian Switzerland,...

At the end of January 2024, 6,881 men and women were behind bars in Switzerland. This is 7% more than a year ago. The occupancy rate has risen to its highest level in ten years. The number of prisoners is comparable to that before the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Some 64% of prisoners were serving sentences or other disciplinary measures, as reported...