Switzerland Financial News

This week in crypto, we had FTX: it was having initial talks with investors on bringing back the FTX.com exchange through structures such as a joint venture, the new FTX leadership team recouped approximately $7 billion in liquid assets, the exchange put a pause on the sale of its stake in the AI startup Anthropic, it was revealed that Sam Bankman-Fried had shot a tutorial video on cryptocurrency for MasterClass, and Sequoia Partner Alfred Lin claimed that the FTX investment was a correct decision at the time.

UBS's backstop on its emergency rescue deal for Credit Suisse is set to be thrust into the spotlight next month as the Swiss lender reveals its latest results, with insiders hoping to announce that the bank will not have to fall back on taxpayer funds.

UBS Group AG is aiming to avoid using a $10 billion backstop for Credit Suisse amid a backlash, the Financial Times reported on Sunday. UBS executives are hoping to announce that the bank will not call on the government backstop when it publishes its second-quarter results on Aug.

Parenteral Drugs (India) have backed out of a deal to sell the stressed loans of the pharma company to National Asset Reconstruction Company (NARCL), after an external committee of one of the banks rejected the offer, saying it is «too low», according to people aware of the development.State Bank of India (SBI) and Punjab National Bank (PNB) had given loans to Parenteral Drugs, a contract manufacturer of liquid formulations which is undergoing corporate insolvency. A binding offer by NARCL for the pharma company had triggered a Swiss Challenge auction, following which SBI invited counter offers from other asset reconstruction companies (ARCs). The lenders, led by SBI, held a Swiss auction on June 16, and they even declared NARCL as the winning bidder, the people cited earlier said.

Swiss private banking giant Julius Baer Group, that began offering Bitcoin and other crypto services to wealthy clients in May last year, is now expanding its crypto presence in Dubai.

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) Innovation Hub published an interim report on Project Mariana, its collaboration with the central banks of France, Singapore and Switzerland, on the use of wholesale central bank digital currency (wCBDC) in tokenized foreign exchange trading. The project is a proof-of-concept that considers questions relating to credit and settlement risk and interoperability.

UBS is preparing a dramatic cull of Credit Suisse bankers in wake of its rescue deal for its Swiss rival.

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The chairman of Swiss Central Bank,Thomas Jordan, has announced that the central bank is launching a wholesale CBDC on Switzerland's SIX digital exchange as part of a pilot. 

BEIJING — Chinese Premier Li Qiang said Tuesday his country was still on track to reach its annual growth target of around 5%.

The head of the Swiss National Bank (SNB) has announced that the bank will launch a wholesale central bank digital currency (wCBDC) pilot project, according to a report. Reuters quoted bank chair Thomas Jordan as saying the project would begin “soon.” 

Jefferies has hired a top Barclays dealmaker in Germany to lead its investment bank in the country in the latest executive departure from the UK lender.

Cryptocurrencies hold “no societal benefits,” and should instead be seen as a form of gambling, according to European Central Bank (ECB) board member Fabio Panetta.

A study of 300 investment managers by the Swiss Stock Exchange (SIX) found that more than half (55%) would be more willing to transact in the crypto world of their digital assets were held by a traditional custodian. It is estimated that there are around $223bn in digital assets under custody around the world.

Bitcoin (BTC) has been trading above $31,000 after its 24.3% rally between June 15 and June 23, which caught many off guard. For bears, that meant facing $165 million in short futures contract liquidations, but the unexpected rally also brought some degree of discomfort for investors using Bitcoin derivatives.

Credit Suisse bankers are moving to UBS on temporary assignments, as dealmakers jostle for a limited number of roles and job cut fears grow after the historic merger.

On June 22, wallet infrastructure provider and digital asset custodian BitGo announced on Twitter that it had decided to cancel its acquisition of fintech infrastructure provider Prime Trust. According to BitGo, “This decision was not made lightly.” The full announcement read:

The Swiss National Bank is looking at what measures are needed to stop another banking collapse after one of the country's biggest lenders, Credit Suisse, was bailed out by cross-town rival UBS earlier this year.

Ramp, a financial technology company specializing in crypto infrastructure, has announced a significant expansion of its platform’s compatibility, adding 40 new fiat currencies. 

Abu Dhabi is the new hot spot for Brevan Howard’s global expansion as the hedge fund moves its founding partner Trifon Natsis to the UAE capital.

Moderated by deputy editor of the The Banker, Liz Lumley, speakers included Alessandro Agnoletti, group head of digital currency and DLT at Nexi, Manuel Klein, product manager of blockchain solutions and digital currencies at Deutsche Bank, Emma Landrault, vice president of J.P. Morgan Onyx Coin Systems, Daniel McLean, digital euro and business model lead at European Central Bank, and Gilbert Verdian, founder and CEO of Quant.