The Swiss National Bank (SNB) will not deliver dividends, for the second time in its 116-year history, due to yet another record loss recorded last year, which exceeds by five times the record reached in 2021, according to the results. central bank preliminary data, cited by Bloomberg.
The central bank expects to record an annual loss of 132 billion Swiss francs (133.6 billion euros at current exchange rates). The big gap in the central bank’s accounts comes from the exchange rate, that is, the strategic investment in foreign currency, the result of a decade of purchases with a view to the weakening of the Swiss franc (which benefits the country’s importing companies).
In total, the total value of the Swiss central bank’s foreign exchange reserves fell by around 17% last year. In December, the institution held 784 billion Swiss francs (793.6 billion euros) in reserves, down from 945 billion francs (956.6 billion euros) in 2021. Still, the bank continues to excel in accumulated foreign currency reserves, even exceeding Saudi Arabia’s GDP, for example, according to Bloomberg accounts.
On the other hand, the investment in Swiss francs led the bank to record a loss of one billion in Swiss francs (1,012 million euros). The investment in gold brought the bank a gain of 400 million Swiss francs (404.9 million euros).
In addition to the State, the other private shareholders of the SNB will also be left empty-handed when it comes to the distribution of dividends. Unlike other central banks, the Swiss National Bank is a public limited company. The final results are presented on March 6th.
