ZURICH: Switzerland’s government will not receive a payout from the Swiss National Bank (SNB) for 2022, as the central bank projects the biggest loss in its 116-year history.
The SNB expects an annual loss of about 132 billion francs (US$143bil or RM629bil), more than five times the previous record, it said yesterday in preliminary results.
The largest part of this, 131 billion francs (RM621bil), stems from collapsed valuations of its large pile of holdings in foreign currencies, accrued as a result of decade-long purchases to weaken the franc.
Positions in Swiss francs saw a valuation loss of around one billion francs (RM4.74bil), while the central bank earned about 400 million francs (RM1.9bil) from its gold holdings.
It is only the second time since the SNB was established in 1906 that it has had to skip its yearly payment to the federal government and Swiss cantons, forcing many of the 26 administrative districts to adjust their spending plans.
The institution paid out six billion francs (RM28.4bil) in 2021.
The conference of cantonal finance chiefs told SDA that while the loss is “regrettable,” interim earnings had suggested such an outcome. — Bloomberg
