EVP Adopts Resolution for an Ethical Banking and Financial Center:
The Swiss People's Party (EVP) adopted the resolution "For an Ethical Banking and Financial Center in Switzerland" at its electoral party conference at the Zurich Stock Exchange today. With this resolution, they aim to provide impetus for a responsible and sustainable banking center. The resolution calls for significantly stronger supervisory, intervention, and sanctioning powers for the financial regulatory authority, stricter capital requirements for banks, and a cap on bonuses and salaries.
Party President and National Council Member Lilian Studer expressed it plainly in her speech:
We have all been vividly reminded by the Credit Suisse debacle that economics without ethics leads to the brink! Pursuing profit maximization as the sole management creed leads to greed and irresponsibility. People and the environment are left behind.
Lilian Studer, National Council Member and Party President of the Swiss People's Party
One of the core concerns of the Swiss People's Party has been to strengthen social entrepreneurship and ethical business practices in the Swiss economic, banking, and financial sectors for years - moving towards more responsibility and sustainability. This is precisely what the resolution aims to address.
Strong Financial Oversight, High Capital, and Capped Bonuses:
The resolution calls for a massive expansion of the supervisory, intervention, and sanctioning powers of the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA). When banks face difficulties, it must be possible to rehabilitate or wind them down in a timely manner - government guarantees and rescue actions at the expense of taxpayers are no longer a solution. Stricter capital requirements are also intended to reduce the default risk of banks and curb their appetite for risk. For systemically important banks, the resolution aims to cap variable compensation (bonuses) at two months' salary or 15 percent of annual income to mitigate incentives for irresponsible risk-taking.
Simultaneously, the resolution calls for maximum salaries for state-owned enterprises or those in which the public sector holds a majority stake, such as PostFinance, cantonal banks, Swiss Federal Railways (SBB), Axpo, etc.
The resolution also advocates for strict sustainability criteria for investments by the Swiss National Bank, Compenswiss (the fund for AHV, IV, EO), as well as pension funds of public entities and state-affiliated enterprises.
A Just Society Requires an Ethical Economy:
The Swiss People's Party has entered the 2023 elections with three clear thematic priorities: a pristine environment, respectful coexistence, and strong families. True to its values of justice, sustainability, and human dignity, the Swiss People's Party is convinced that a society that wants to treat each other with respect cannot tolerate injustices like exploitation or poverty - and it needs an economy that acts ethically and responsibly. The Swiss People's Party will continue to advocate for these principles in the election year and in the upcoming legislative period.
Kontakt
- Lilian Studer, Parteipräsidentin und Nationalrätin: 076 575 24 77
- Nik Gugger, Nationalrat und Vizepräsident: 079 385 35 35
- François Bachmann, Vizepräsident: 079 668 69 46 (Romandie)
- Marc Jost, Nationalrat: 076 206 57 57
- Roman Rutz, Generalsekretär: 078 683 56 05
- Dirk Meisel, Leiter Kommunikation: 079 193 12 70
 at the Zurich Stock Exchange){kind=link}