Switzerland's foreign minister wants bankers to help craft foreign policy. The view is music to the ears of the Swiss banking industry.
The Swiss finance industry should have a more powerful voice in foreign policy – that was the summary on a panel including Swiss foreign minister Ignazio Cassis and representatives from business and politics. The surprising conclusion comes as Bern cultivates closer ties to Switzerland's finance industry; the banking lobby's CEO is the former top Swiss finance diplomat, Joerg Gasser.
The cozying-up follows a period of intense government intervention on behalf of export-heavy banks. It culminated in tighter regulation on risk-taking and capital cushions as well as agreeing on a series of data-swapping pacts after conceding that it could no longer maintain banking secrecy laws.
«Business Development Politics»
Cassis, the foreign minister, in July, revealed a foreign policy road map, «AVIS28» – the first time the Swiss government has publicly done so. The relatively transparent foreign policy debate comes as Switzerland seeks to clarify its place within the European Union, an issue which takes a backseat to Britain's impending exit.
The open debate «is about finding out where this journey leads,» Cassis said. «Foreign policy has to be supported domestically as well – what am I doing abroad if my own constituency doesn't understand what I'm trying to do?» Cassis said. The event, held to coincide with parliamentary elections later this month, was hosted by the Swiss Bankers Association and Zurich's association of banks, the ZBV.
Switzerland, as well as its finance industry, is confronted with global problems, intricately entwined with business. Foreign policy today is «business development politics,» Cassis said.
Solution vs Problem
Swiss banks have long been able to count on the active support of current finance minister Ueli Maurer, who has accompanied delegations of bankers to China and Saudi Arabia. Their presence in foreign policy has until now been less in demand. Credit Suisse and UBS both clinched roles in the listing of Saudi Aramco, which could raise up to $100 billion.
Swiss banks are part of the solution, not part of the problem anymore, Gasser noted at a recent event. The diplomat-turned-lobbyist argued for international standards to fight corruption, as opposed to drafting new laws and bans. «Guidelines are more efficient than formal rules,» he said.
He welcomed the involvement of Swiss finance, an export industry, in foreign policy debate. Swiss firms are still struggling with market access in the European Union, part of the bigger question of relations between Switzerland and the bloc.
