Figures about the Swiss financial centres are often quoted and rarely explained. The articles in this series present official figures on banks, commodity trading, assets under management and the financial centres, name their sources and explain what they measure and what they leave out. They show, for example, why two official statistics on Swiss commodity trading differ, how the number of banks has changed over recent decades, and how the financial centres compare with each other, so that readers can use the figures correctly in their own analysis and decisions.
Figures about the Swiss financial centres are often quoted without their source, and different statistics on the same subject can differ by a factor of three. Anyone who uses figures in a business plan, an investment decision or a negotiation should know what they measure.
The differences often have simple causes. One statistic counts turnover, another value added, a third the number of employees or companies, and some include transit trade while others follow only the goods that physically cross the Swiss border. Surveys by industry associations, data from the Swiss National Bank and figures from the Federal Statistical Office each serve their own purpose.
Before relying on a figure, a reader should ask who published it, which year it refers to, what exactly is counted and whether the method has changed over time. A number that appears in many publications is not necessarily more reliable, because it may simply have been copied from a single original source without anyone checking it again.
Careful use of figures also has practical value in dealings with Swiss counterparties. Banks, investors and authorities tend to check the numbers they are shown, and a business plan that cites official sources and explains its assumptions is taken more seriously than one that relies on round figures from press reports or marketing material.
The articles in this series present official figures on the Geneva financial centre, on Swiss commodity trading and on the consolidation of the private banks, name their sources and explain why the numbers differ.
The Geneva financial centre in figures
Figures on the weight of the Geneva financial centre circulate widely, often without their year, source or definition. This article… Read more Banking · FiguresThe consolidation of Swiss private banks in figures
The number of private banks in Switzerland has roughly halved since 2010, while the assets they manage have reached a… Read more Commodity Trading · FiguresCommodity trading in Geneva: structure, figures, and why two official statistics diverge
Ask what Swiss commodity trading is worth and you receive two official answers that differ by a factor of three. Read more