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SWITZERLAND
THE SWISS ECONOMY Video: The Economy Of SWITZERLAND Unraveling the Swiss Economy by Economic Raven Burgess COMMENTARY During my university years I started to be interesting in the economics of banking and finance, and this led me to the 'Gnomes of Switzerland' ... the bankers that were famous for their secrecy and their trust. While I was still at college, I made a trip to Zurich to see Swiss banks for myself. I had a morning appointment, and thinking that Swiss banks would be rather like British banks and keep normal 'banking hours', I arrived promptly at 10.00am only to find that the Swiss bankers had been waiting for me since 8.00 am. They were nice to me, and I think they understood the difference in culture that had casued the problem. On another occasion I was flying into Geneva to attend a meeting at one of the Geneva based UN organizations. I missed one of the subway trains from the airport to the center of Geneva, and went upstairs to a waiting room to wait for the next train which was scheduled for 9am. I dozed off for a few minutes and found myself still in the waiting room with a minute to go before the 9 o'clock train. I raced down to the platform and the train was not there. I thought I had missed it. But 30 seconds before 9.00am the train pulled into the station. I got in ... and 5 seconds before 9.00 there was an announcement that the doors were about to close, and EXACTLY at 9.00.00 the train started up and pulled out of the station. I think about that example of Swiss punctuality whenever I am travelling in rail in the USA and in other parts of the world and get quite depressed at the contrast!!!!!!! Peter Burgess | |||||||||
The Economy Of SWITZERLAND, Unraveling Swiss Economy
2,416,696 views Premiered Feb 13, 2021 Economic Raven 100K subscribers Economy of Switzerland is a post-industrial, highly ‘service-driven’, ‘free-market’ powered by chocolates, cheese, watches and Swiss Banks. While Swiss people don’t flaunt their wealth, the country is often in the economic news as one of the richest in the world, and with one of the highest GDP per capita of over US $80,000. With its unique national history and location, Switzerland has earned itself a stellar reputation in International Finance. There is more to Switzerland than luxury watch brands like Rolex, Richard Mille, and premium chocolate brands like LINDT and TOBLERONE. Whether it comes to the high-value services, OR, trains roaming in the high altitudes carrying tourists, OR, exports of pharmaceuticals and agricultural products, OR, its notorious banks protecting your hard-earned or not so hard-earned money, Switzerland, offers TRUST like no other, making itself a financial powerhouse. #economy #switzerland #SwissBanks
Some of the 4,175 Comments --------------------------------------- President William Howard Taft President William Howard Taft 6 months ago Switzerland is like the player who doesn’t talk shit during monopoly and stays quiet as he slowly wins the game. 2.2K --------------------------------------- Eric Fang Eric Fang 5 months ago I visited Switzerland in 1994 from China. Then China was so poor, while Switzerland is so advanced with most most beautiful people and land - I always feel that I had a trip to heaven and paradise. God bless them. I moved to Canada for long time, I always joked that I will move to Switzerland once I win lottery. 239 --------------------------------------- Luthril Charryk Luthril Charryk 4 months ago Missing two important things imo: 1) Switzerland‘s role in international resource trade 2) Switzerland‘s rather unique education system with only about 20-40% of people having a bachelor‘s degree, whereas the vast majority has a professional diploma acquired through a practical apprenticeship (even more if you count all the people who studied after their apprenticeships) -> less money wasted on degrees that won‘t be very useful, as well as low youth employment rate, as they are actually skilled in a needed trade 651 --------------------------------------- Dan G Dan G 5 months ago (edited) One very important aspect is not mentioned: The average swiss is extremely over-insured. There's insurance that covers earthquakes and natural disasters up to a certain amount. The street circulating bicycles are all insured. Most kids have dental plans. Health insurance is mandatory. All swiss bank accounts are insured up to 100k by law (protected deposits) even stocks trading accounts can fall into this law which means the institutions with brokerage options would be required to protect 100k worth of your portfolio's assets against any type of bankruptcy. There's low cost legal insurance with annually free lawyer hours that don't increase your premium....... I could go on and on.... 397 --------------------------------------- Michael Aebi Michael Aebi 7 months ago As a Swiss I am convinced that the biggest advantage of this country is its 1) direct democracy and 2) federalism 3) education system. No BS politician decisions on important matters, no left right direction changes and jumping on trends after a new president/chancellor/political party etc. took over power, and therefore the country is relatively stable, which in return attracts businesses. Tax competition among cantons helps keeping the government relatively lean and competitive. Higher education is free and open for anybody qualifying for it and the apprenticeship system is geared towards practical knowledge rather than theories. 1K --------------------------------------- Alejandro Karacsonyi Alejandro Karacsonyi 2 months ago Most people overlook how difficult it was for Switzerland to remain neutral while being surrounded by the axis powers, especially given it is a german speaking country. 23 --------------------------------------- Emanuel Schmidt Emanuel Schmidt 8 months ago you can definitely find better chocolate brands in Switzerland, including Läderach. Toblerone is at the lower end of the Swiss chocolate spectrum. Then again, you can buy a Migros brand chocolate and it will beat most chocolates worldwide. 953 --------------------------------------- peter penner peter penner 1 month ago (edited) one of the most important things has been forgotten. i am swiss myself and live in switzerland. switzerland has a very good social system and very good medical care. nobody has to go hungry, nobody is homeless, or has to be afraid of becoming one. everyone has prospects. this ensures stability and security. this is directly related to the prosperity of switzerland. socialism! 56 --------------------------------------- Nawaf Abu-Ghazaleh Nawaf Abu-Ghazaleh 7 months ago (edited) I lived and studied two years in Switzerland back in 1990. I have to say that quality of life, food, beverages and standards are way higher than any European country I visited. The country is so organized that even the Japanese can't match the accuracy the Swiss reached to. They have the most yummy cheese if you are a true cheese lover, best chocolates in the world and the best restaurants serving top quality meats prepared by the best chefs you can ever come across. I made a terrible mistake going back to the Middle East after spending two years pampered by the Swiss hospitality and human care. 32 --------------------------------------- Matthew Hill Matthew Hill 6 months ago Nazis: hide our money Switzerland: ok Germany (1946)- where's our money Switzerland: what money? 1.7K --------------------------------------- K 9 K 9 7 months ago (edited) Once the legend said, 'trust is the most expensive thing in world, cheap people can't afford it'. 772 --------------------------------------- Kiran Kadambari Kiran Kadambari 6 months ago In short Switzerland is the 'The Iron Bank' of the world!! 760 --------------------------------------- Урош Раца Урош Раца 7 months ago Everyone: WE GO TO WAR! The Swiss: We'll count the money. 2.3K --------------------------------------- Tariq A Tariq A 7 months ago (edited) Speaking about Swiss agriculture and its exports, I think it's extremely important to mention that *this is not from being more efficient than everyone else*. The average tariff on imports of animal and dairy products is 125-150%. For comparison, the US's is 2.3 and 19%, respectively. The average of their agricultural tariff rates is 47.6%, compared with the US rate of 4.9% (WTO Tariff Profiles, 2021). Their ag tariffs are on average almost 10x higher. Like the US (or many countries), it is also subsidized, although according to the OECD, they spend over double as much as the US as a percentage of GDP (OECD [Agricultural Support], 2021). The Swiss agricultural sector is generally very inefficient. Which is why they have the massive protections + subsidies. It wouldn't survive well if exposed to world markets. 17 --------------------------------------- Niclas Johansson Niclas Johansson 7 months ago One of the reasons that Switzerland is a great business hub, and has been for centuries, IS its central location in the richest part of Europe, and its access to lots of rivers to conduct trade. 33 --------------------------------------- D. Jensen D. Jensen 3 weeks ago 'Work hard, spend little, save a lot' perfectly describes my father, his parents, and his grandparents. It's also what I was taught from Day One. Sad to say that many modern governments have learned how to prey on savers by printing fiat money to finance massive spending programs...like the current US administration is doing. To Switzerland's great credit, they've scrupulously avoided that road to ruin. 6 --------------------------------------- Lurmic Lurmic 8 months ago I wouldn't say that Switzerland didn't partake in WW2 because of economic reasons. Switzerland as a country has been neutral since the Vienna Congress in 1815, so its decision to not engage in warfare was definitely not an economic one, but more part of its history and national identity. Additionally, Switzerland was already amongst the richer countries in Europe before WW1, just look at Europan GDPs per capita in e.g. 1914, and you'll see Switzerland already ranking amongst the highest. Lastly, the banking secret was abolished a few years ago, so everything mentioned with regards to that is outdated Otherwise great video, but it seems like it has a lot of 'Americanised' views on Switzerland, which do not necessarily represent the truth (however I'm not denying that Switzerland's history is also somewhat shady sometimes). 39 --------------------------------------- Steve Abplanalp Steve Abplanalp 2 months ago Nice work on the video. I've spent time in Switzerland over the years and it really is a unique place. It's position nestled between Germany, France, Austria and Italy makes it a major transit route for freight and people crossing between those countries too. 2 --------------------------------------- CiCC kány CiCC kány 8 months ago I just recently moved to Switzerland, and I can confirm everything, but I would add something to the Swiss quality part. In the grocery stores all Swiss products have the Swiss flag, so you can't make a mistake and buy eg. Dutch eggs accidentally. However, what I see is that the cheap import is sold out before the Swiss one, so I dare to say that people still choose the cheaper one at least from the groceries. Especially when I have to choose between Italian mozzarella and Swiss mozzarella for twice the price. I mean really?! I would choose the Italian one even if they were the same price. 21 --------------------------------------- Stane Marchiotti Stane Marchiotti 8 months ago Just to be clear, I lived, not only worked in CH. For some 15 years. Now I'm retired out of CH, even receiving my part of pension from CH. Great coutry, hard working and honest people, sometimes a bit closed and nationalistic but that's the way small nations can be novadays. Even people in my country are behaving in the similar way. Maybe reflex for the self-preservation. I admit, I like your clips, fine work! 179 Economic Raven --------------------------------------- La Serenisima La Serenisima 7 months ago (edited) I'm an Argentine citizen working at the Swiss Embassy in Buenos Aires and I can tell you: 1_ Very few and slow taxes 2_ Almost no money emission 3_ Open to international trading 4_ Very few obstacles to start a business 5_ Gentle labour market legislation This is why Switzerland is so rich and Argentina is so poor 151 --------------------------------------- F S F S 7 months ago A part that was left out was the heavy industrialization that took place in the 19th century. And trains!! Switzerland had always been a nightmare for transportation, but that changed when the Swiss set out to build (what still is) the world’s most dense train network, which included monumental bridges and the world’s longest train tunnels. To finance these gigantic projects, they needed large banks and to build them, they needed lots of engineers. The latter were largely provided by the 1855-founded Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, ETH, which to this day is ranked best university of continental Europe. And the banks, well you heard about those. 17 --------------------------------------- BeActive Behappy BeActive Behappy 5 months ago You kept me engaged throughout. The subject was simple, illustrative and logical but the way it was put was fantabulous. 76 --------------------------------------- Pandaros Faolan Excelsior Pandaros Faolan Excelsior 2 months ago (edited) 2:20 Just a side note, we (Switzerland) were almost at war. We could only stay out of it because we traded with Nazi Germany and the Allies. Despite our neutrality, we have an extremely strong military defense, so the Germans decided to spare us. But if the war had turned out in favor of the Germans, Germany would soon have invaded Switzerland and would have taken us after a loss-making battle. It is also interesting to know that a document has emerged in which it was stated that certain officers of the Swiss military had made a pact with the puppet government in France in order to take action against Germany without the consent of the Federal Council (the highest body in Switzerland). The Germans found out about this, but luckily they did not choose to take our country as at the time Germany was fighting on many other fronts. Pandaros Excelsior 14 --------------------------------------- Franco A Franco A 9 months ago As a Swiss person, I can only say 'spot on.' Well researched. 348 Economic Raven --------------------------------------- Tancred De Hauteville Tancred De Hauteville 3 months ago It's wrong to say that Switzerland only got rich after WW2. GDP per head in Switzerland was already one of the highest in the world in the early 20th century. 7 --------------------------------------- Raj K Raj K 7 months ago Giving good insight into Swiss economic development and the rigidity with which the country is run by all concerned the government and the citizens in a harmonious and cooperative way. This is the ultimate secret of the country's economic success. 15 --------------------------------------- Sarah Cortez Sarah Cortez 6 months ago Other countries: WE WILL FIGHT THIS WAR HEAD ON! Switzerland: Chaos is a ladder. 299 --------------------------------------- Teena Gopal Teena Gopal 4 months ago We r proud of switzerland , there system is so good , that everyone can afford everything n not like other countries people r dying for food , i am proud that i am in swizerland .Love u swiss 10 --------------------------------------- the doctor chants 00 the doctor chants 00 7 months ago ask an Indian about swiss. and in all possibility he will know the Swiss bank rather than Swiss chocolates. thanks to the politicians 626 --------------------------------------- Baptiste Baptiste 8 months ago as a swiss I can say there are few mistakes but overall it's a well made video 18 --------------------------------------- Lynx Lynx 7 months ago Actually Switzerland doesn't need as many referendums as you may think. Because the politicians know that the option is there they automatically do a better job of representing the people. There are still Referendums or laws proposed by citizens but it's not all the time. 3 --------------------------------------- ehned ehned 7 months ago (edited) Nice video! I just want to add 2 things. 1. Switzerland was/is always very big on inventions and one of the leading countries in the industrial revolution (mostly textile industry). 2. The appeal of switzerland for international corporations isn’t only it’s low taxes, but also the high amount of stability, one of the best infrastructures worldwide (nothing I have ever seen comes close to the swiss public transport system) and the overall safety of the country (worst thing to happen to a big corporation is a more or less peaceful blockade of the entrance by activists every few years and minor vandalism, brocken window or sprayed wall, on 1. of may, but this happens mostly to swiss banks xD) 5 --------------------------------------- Sprezzatura Sprezzatura 7 months ago (edited) Switzerland has the advantage of a small population. Good governance maintains an orderly and carefully considered society. Other countries would do well to use the Swiss playbook. Yes, Switzerland has a robust banking sector, but little in the way of natural resources. So they have made the most of what they DO have. Let other countries fall into chaos fighting over irrelevant rights issues like genderless bathroom. The Swiss focus on what truly matters: a clean environment, excellent healthcare and pension systems. But you have to measure up to live there. 2 --------------------------------------- Kam Kam Kam Kam 6 months ago One of the countries I am very interested in learning from and visiting. I am absolutely fascinated by them. 56 --------------------------------------- N.M N.M 1 month ago I've visited Switzerland, not just wealthy but beautiful, the country side is stunning 2 --------------------------------------- Joy Lewis Joy Lewis 9 months ago These are incredibly high quality videos. I was very surprised when I saw the subscriber count. 637 Economic Raven --------------------------------------- Demian González Demian González 5 months ago Ellos se han beneficiado muchísimo y han sacado partido de su posición geográfica, en el mismísimo centro del tejido industrial más importante de Europa: Francia, Alemania e Italia. 1 --------------------------------------- Rowland Mogaecho Rowland Mogaecho 7 months ago I can attest to that because of my multiple visits to the country. I've never experienced such peaceful and friendly people like the Swiss. 52 --------------------------------------- Daniel Vuoristo Daniel Vuoristo 7 months ago The imports are also more expensive because of Switzerland being landlocked, which of course spurs self sustainability 50 --------------------------------------- DownhillMC DownhillMC 8 months ago Looking at this, I must say I love the traveling restrictions due the pandemic - the cities are so much nicer without the overtourism 🤣 Great video, by the way 👍 4 --------------------------------------- Tiago Bértolo Tiago Bértolo 4 months ago Swiss banks no longer have secrecy. 'That was often the reality until exactly one year ago, when, on 5th October 2018, the Swiss tax agency, the Federal Tax Administration (FTA) officially started exchanging bank account data with tax authorities in other countries for the first time. This marked the end of Swiss banking secretly.' 27 --------------------------------------- Steve Abplanalp Steve Abplanalp 2 months ago Nice work on the video. I've spent time in Switzerland over the years and it really is a unique place. It's position nestled between Germany, France, Austria and Italy makes it a major transit route for freight and people crossing between those countries too. 5 --------------------------------------- Chris Chris 6 months ago The Swiss economy is based on the principle of work hard, spend little and save a lot. I do all of those 3 things in South Africa ... unfortunately conditions outside my control do not allow me to earn a fair exchange of my services. 37 --------------------------------------- Linda Offenbach Linda Offenbach 8 months ago The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) sits there since 1930 which is the sole reason. Switzerland wasn't attacked by Germany because it governed storage of gold reserves. As a result of the policy of appeasement of Germany by the UK and France, in March 1939, the BIS was obliged to transfer 23 tons of gold it held, on behalf of Czechoslovakia, to the German Reichsbank, following the German annexation of Czechoslovakia... Both the BIS and German Reichsbank became entangled in large. The BIS claimed neutrality, but its operations were helpful to Germany. The 1944 Bretton Woods Conference recommended liquidation of BIS as soon as possible. The British government suspended the dissolution and the decision to liquidate the BIS was officially reversed in 1948... At the time, the Rothschild banking family of England were involved at the highest British political offices close to the Queen, intelligence, and zionist leadership (also the first financier of the biggest land purchases for Jewish settlements in Palestina, later proclaimed Israel; the Rothschild Boulevard in Tel Aviv is a Reminiscent). Anyway, the BIS sits in Switserland. Its facilitates high finance around the world. That's why... 2 --------------------------------------- Leonardo Chiesa Leonardo Chiesa 5 months ago I'm Swiss and I'll tell you another secret that makes us better than other nations, in politics we are fierce, but when the people (whom we call 'the sovereign people') decide something, there is no longer left or right, we are all united and we work to achieve the goals. That's why we have a nation with four languages and despite being so different we are so united, we also love to make (lot of) fun of each other. Our military system (which we have “recently” voted to be compulsory for all men of 18 years of age) unites languages, increases multiculturalism and allows young men to become men and to make them responsible, to make them understand the importance of unity and work. There are also some negative aspects, such as the somewhat omnipresent male chauvinism and the wage disparity between men and women, which we are slowly overcoming. At school I learned four languages, Italian (one of the official languages in Switzerland and my mother language), German, French and English (not official). Without too many problems. Everyone has the same opportunities and even the poorest can become a doctor, lawyer, scientist and so on. We are not perfect, but we aim for perfection, without compromise. In Switzerland you either live like this or you live off the backs of those who work, but you live badly, because you know that with a little healthy commitment you can guarantee yourself a good future. 5 --------------------------------------- Klaus Mustermann Klaus Mustermann 8 months ago Pretty fine research and a nice, simple explanation presented in an entertaining manor! Well done! I would add Insurance-Companys to the Banking-Sector, pretty hard to find a decent insurance as a doctor in germany that is not based in Switzerland ;). Same for Retirement-funds. And besides trust I would also add Quality on the same level for their formula to success. The swiss are doing what the germans are just pretending to do. While we are cutting corners, increasing workload on every employee, going for the cheapest route for maximum profits, the swiss simply abide to the highest quality possible and add the extra spending on the price. And it works. Because people want QUALITY and not cheap stuff. Id rather pay 2 euros more for a chocolate bar that tastes like chocolate, than 2 euros less for one that tastes like ass. 4 --------------------------------------- GreenCoffeShot G GreenCoffeShot G 7 months ago This is a good video about Switzerland, I'm Swiss and I would add only few things as the big mix of culture in the cities and also the different mindset regarding where you are living in the country. I think it has a huge impact on politic and so on economy, we have a culture of compromises. Furthermore, Switzerland used to gain trust of other countries during history as with the Vatican guard story. (Clemens VII) Anyway great job, it's just few more details ! 2 --------------------------------------- Raffaele Giustini Raffaele Giustini 7 months ago Love the content! Essential, clear, concise. Found it in my recommended videos after watching lots of economics videos. Thank you algorithm! 2 --------------------------------------- Susanna Marker Susanna Marker 6 months ago Why is Switzerland so rich ? Simple : they have never been stupid enough to plough their cash into the EEC (later EU) Budget. The swiss know the EU is the continuation of Germany by other means. 4 --------------------------------------- Ujwal Timalsina Ujwal Timalsina 8 months ago (edited) I love these type of videos.. Please make video on 'economy of south Asia and Chinese impact in their economy ' China is aggressively expanding its economic ties with countries surrounding India like Bangladesh, Nepal, Srilanka, Maldives and most importantly Pakistan. I think stepping out of Europe and America will make this channel unique and attract global audience. 2 --------------------------------------- Camknowledge for Travel Camknowledge for Travel 6 months ago The people in Switzerland 🇨🇭 have a culture, work hard, spend little and save a lot . Good culture I will learn from them. 46 --------------------------------------- Someone Someone 9 months ago Switzerland is a raw gem in terms of democracy and government in the world. 5 --------------------------------------- Ian Board Ian Board 7 months ago I once read something in a book that resonated: that it was more accurate to think of Switzerland as a business than a country. 3 --------------------------------------- Robin Hilber Robin Hilber 8 months ago Great high quality video with very well and thorough research. The only point where I tend to disagree, is the remark at 7:45 about the employment protection 'not being one of the best'. I'm not sure what other countries this comparison is made to, but we are nowhere near a hire-and-fire policy. Depending on the circumstance firing an employee can be a huge pain. Same goes for terminating a rental agreement. --------------------------------------- Sorie Kargbo Sorie Kargbo 5 months ago Happy to find out that we that love Switzerland are a lot!!! 💥 apart from it history, there’s something about the country that attracts a lot of people. I’ll one day find out when I visit there.🇨🇭 9 --------------------------------------- Fabrice Rocha Fabrice Rocha 8 months ago I am Swiss and I can confirm that this video is accurate. Well done Economic Raven. 50 --------------------------------------- Economic Raven Ada Özen Ada Özen 1 month ago hi raven, but wouldn't high savings cause economy to recede? we have seen in all Econ theories that the way to growth is consuming. --------------------------------------- Martin C Martin C 7 months ago Best Video I have watched about Switzerland so far,there are stereotypes confirmed also,but at least not negative ones about Switzerland and its citizens.What I never heard about is the mentioned claim that we sold arms during war.Being neutral,we are not allowed by law to support countries in fighting wars,some arms can be bought before the war starts,yes,but the industry for weapons and arms was not very big during WWII.Possibly we sold machines to produce arms maybe. Also I would like to point out that EU has changed the work environment a lot and that Swiss people dont really have an advantage from the wealth being accumulated in the banks,funds and insurances except that there is a lot of jobs available.But the government has huge expenses to keep the bank industry running and the currency stable.WEF in Davos has also a big influence,together with a lot of International Organisations based in Geneva,many being charities. 8 --------------------------------------- Luke Go Luke Go 8 months ago (edited) Switzerland has no 'administration.' It's nationally always a sharing of power between at least 4 parties. Also: - Switzerland's Novartis and Roche are the world's largest pharmaceutical companies - Most gold on earth passes through Switzerland (melting) - Switzerland is a leading crypto currency country (crypto valley) 8 --------------------------------------- Doug Bootle Doug Bootle 9 months ago Banking secrecy in Switzerland ended in January 2017. Any non-Swiss government that wants Swiss bank details of one of it's citizens will get it. 169 --------------------------------------- LM H LM H 9 months ago Yeah and Americans need to do more research to learn that the rules changed, especially the Hollywood bozos that are still using cliches in their films about Swiss banks. 39 --------------------------------------- Rajadhiraj Maharaj Rajadhiraj Maharaj 8 months ago @Weedling 2 City of London owns Cayman Islands. CIA owns Dubai. 9 --------------------------------------- Rehan Fauzan Rehan Fauzan 8 months ago @Weedling 2 dont forget the germans through their deutsche bank --------------------------------------- Nicolas Garcia Nicolas Garcia 8 months ago Whatever, bank secrecy is only ok if 2 countries exchange the said details, for instance most africain countries doesn't and they won't get any details. 1 --------------------------------------- super nova super nova 8 months ago @Rajadhiraj Maharaj dude does cia really own dub ai --------------------------------------- achinoy achinoy 8 months ago It all sounds nice, but when it comes to actual implementation, things dont happen. The people who have their dirty money in swiss banks are also the same people who run most of those 'non-Swiss' governments. Unless there are major violent revolutions around the world, no one is ever going to be checking about the details of Swiss bank accounts. I think the Swiss government knows this too. So business can go on as usual. 2 --------------------------------------- Leopoldo Ghielmetti Leopoldo Ghielmetti 7 months ago @LM H And in the raking shown in the video, US and Cyman Islands are ranked higher that Switzerland. So instead of complaining about Switzerland they should start to use US banks as the cliche for tax evaders and other criminals. 6 |