((Automatic translation by Reuters, please see disclaimer https://bit.ly/rtrsauto))
Debt levels in the US and Europe pose a risk to international financial stability and to Switzerland, Swiss Finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter said in an interview published on Saturday.
In an interview with the Swiss daily Blick, Ms Keller-Sutter praised Switzerland’s economic “discipline”, which she said has enabled the country to cope with the economic challenges posed by the COVID-19 virus pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
On the other hand, other countries “are so in debt that they are almost no longer able to trade,” she said, citing the example of France.
“Or look at America: it’s a time bomb. It’s a ticking bomb. The mini-crash on the stock markets at the beginning of August was a wake-up call,” the minister said.
“It was an expression of investors’ fears of a recession Debt levels in the US and Europe pose a risk to international financial stability and a risk to Switzerland,” she said.
Ms Keller-Sutter also discussed a government proposal to force Swiss bank UBS to hold more capital after buying its former rival, Credit Suisse, following its collapse last year.
She defended the additional capital requirements needed to protect Switzerland from another banking collapse.
UBS chief executive Sergio Ermotti criticized the proposal, and when asked if she was in contact with him about it, he replied: “No, I have not been contacted:
“No, I am no longer in contact with him. It is now a normal political process
The newspaper also asked her what she thought about speculation that UBS could move its headquarters abroad if it was believed that conditions in Switzerland were no longer suitable for it.
“The Federal Council (cabinet) believes that it is good for the economy to have a large Swiss bank, but the bank must decide for itself how it wants to position itself.”
UBS has repeatedly stated that it is committed to Switzerland.