ZURICH, Switzerland -- The Swiss National Bank said today it was considerably reducing the number of institutions exempt from negative rates on their cash deposits held at the central bank.
The SNB charges 0.75 percent on some Swiss franc deposits to try to deter speculative flows into the currency. This measure has also hit Swiss savers and the 673 billion Swiss franc ($700 billion) pension fund industry, which is subject to fees on its franc deposits.
At the bank's March policy meeting, Chairman Thomas Jordan said exceptions to charges on franc deposits are not in the central bank's interest because it undermines the effectiveness of monetary policy.
Negative interest will now also apply to the so-called sight deposit accounts held at the bank by enterprises associated with the Confederation, the Federal Pension Fund, and the SNB's pension fund, the central bank said in a statement. ...
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