Foreign cash returning to Switzerland's vaults

AFP , ZURICH
Monday, May 10, 2004,Page 12

As Switzerland's two largest commercial banks announced huge rises in quarterly profits over the past week, Swiss bankers were welcoming the return of large amounts of foreign cash to their vaults.

UBS, the country's largest banking group, raked in a record 35 billion Swiss francs (US$23.3 billion dollars) in new funds under its management, as it doubled its first-quarter net profit this year to SF2.42 billion.

The wealth and asset management business was "growing fast," UBS commented last Tuesday.

A day later, its slightly smaller rival Credit Suisse announced a near seven-fold increase in its first quarter net profit to SF1.86 billion, also partly fuelled by regained deposits.

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/worldbiz/archives/2004/05/10/2003154922

...Last year we put cash into Euros and into some banks in Europe...just in case....

Talked to him about it today too...Not to sound too paranoid, but I told him we might want to cash in on some other investments and put the cash into Euros...

Hey, all its going to take is another 9/11 or something like that (or just Bush bankrupting the USA with its war in Iraq and its ever-growing bill) and then the economy taking an even bigger hit (when in reality it still sucks and is falsely improving - meanwhile the only thing keeping it afloat is the low interest rates and home sales, but that can change very quickly - especially if gas prices keep rising and then the domino effect on other staples and goods (ie. Milk, food etc.) and then you have inflation - and the fed raises interest rates and then you have less home sales and....well, you get the picture...

Needless to say, if our economy took a big hit, the dollar might be worth a small fraction of what it is today...so, then the question is would you rather have $100K in the bank or 100K Euros in a European Bank....Especially if you ever really need it....

I am really thinking more and more we are going to need it...we are calling it our rainy day fund...our exit strategy...lots of people who fled Nazi Germany needed them...

so will the Dollar.

...but what if the US economy is seen worldwide as so bankrupt and unstable, how will our $$ be any different than say the Lire were in Italy or other currencies in Latin America with Inflation?

Also, What if, your house was suddenly worth less than half of your value today, and you have home equity loans and debts that exceed the amount you can sell it for (very realistic future scenario these days) and there was economic and political chaos here in the US...Think 9/11 type scenario and people being "detained" and you want to get the hell out of Dodge....how much are your $$$ worth then?

My suggestion for having Cash pulled out and out of the country for a "rainy day" is what many of my relatives had to do to get out of Nazi Germany and Europe when it got dangerous...I never thought I'd see the day that what is happening now in Iraq and the abuse of prisoners would happen...

Don't know about you, but I feel like I just woke up in Nazi Germany today...