In the Swiss parliament, the many emotions surrounding the collapse of Credit Suisse are being voiced in the name of the people. finews.asia takes a look at far more important issues at stake.
It could hardly have been more spectacular. After an emotionally heated debate, the Swiss National Council shortly before midnight last night shot down billions of francs in loan guarantees for the state-imposed bailout of Credit Suisse by arch rival UBS. What looks like an impressive feat on the surface is merely well-orchestrated shadow boxing.
The guarantees that ultimately prevented a bank run had long since been granted by the government under emergency law. What is going on in parliament these days is more like politicians venting their spleens or settling accounts between themselves. One side claims to represent the «people.» The other side supports the bankers, or «banksters» in the parlance of the day, who, after all, represent the most important sector of the Swiss economy.
Aversion Among the Populus
The debate underscores the enormous aversion among the general population toward bankers and their behavior, which some of the top representatives of their guild still refuse to acknowledge.
This has led to an alienation manifesting itself in speechlessness and helplessness reaching from the street to the halls of the Federal Parliament. While parliamentarians pretend to have their unique solution to the problem, they are not addressing the more important issues at hand.
Nod to the Government
The parliamentary outrage comes into sharper focus with the realization that 2023 is a national election year and politicians see a unique opportunity to position themselves advantageously for the fall. At the same time, the rejection of the billion of francs in loan guarantees is also a clear message to the government to be more sparing about enacting emergency laws in the future.
All of this noise is highly counterproductive, because the integration of Credit Suisse into UBS, which will result in a behemoth Swiss banking juggernaut in Switzerland, is already in full swing with momentum all its own.
Understanding of Democracy Undermined
It's much more important to look ahead and define the framework within which the Swiss giga-bank can and should operate without the state.
This is necessary so as not to once again undermine the principles of democracy in a few years by pulling the emergency legal handbrake in a worst-case situation.
