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Information On The Offshore Banking System In Switzerland
Country name: Switzerland
Geographic location: Surrounded by Germany, Liechtenstein, France, Italy and Austria the landlocked country of Switzerland is located in Central Europe. The Swiss Alps, one of the country's most recognized land masses, are found in the central and southern parts of the country. The capital city of Switzerland is Bern.
Official language: Their are 4 languages spoken by Swiss citizens, German, French, Italian and Rhaeto-Romanic, with German being the most prevalent.
Languages commonly spoken in offshore banks: English, German, French and Italian are all spoken in the business community.
Population: 7,604,467(est.2009)
GDP per capita: $39,800
Currency: The Swiss Franc(CHF)- 1CHF=.934cents
Summary: The most famous tax haven in the world has to Switzerland. Known throughout the world for sheltering the assets of some of the world's richest people, including celebrities, Switzerland has led the way as a country with no taxes on savings.
Infrastructure and economy: Wages and per capita income are some of the highest in the world. Switzerland's prosperity is dependent on trade exports as well as its banking industry. Long known for having the highest standards for banking and financial services, along with liberal investment policies and conservative monetary policies, Switzerland has established a reputation that has brought in investments from around the world.
Legal system: Switzerland's laws have a basis in civil law. The government is a federal republic with a Presidential office, a Supreme Court and 2 houses in the Federal Assembly. The 200 member National Council's members are elected every 4 years and the
state Council has 2 members for each of the 26 catons they represent. While similar to U.S., in that bills progress though committees and the 2 houses, once the are ratified the Supreme Court has no authority to overturn them.
7 department heads make up the Presidential office, which is similar to the U.S. Cabinet. These department heads are elected every 4 years by the full assembly.
Did you know? / Special services: Portions of Switzerland's banking laws have been interpreted in the courts to make it a prosecutable offense to divulge customer information to third parties. This includes official requests from foreign governments. Employees of financial institutions are required to sign an agreement to follow the secrecy portion of the banking act as a condition of employment. The bank itself, and the employee can both be prosecuted, if it is proven that a violation of this agreement has taken place.
Links to bank websites:
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