The Swiss National Bank lost 142.4 billion Swiss francs ($143 billion) in the first nine months of the year amid turmoil in global currency markets. The Swiss National Bank’s foreign exchange positions caused losses of 141 billion Swiss francs, and its gold and Swiss currency positions also saw losses. The Swiss National Bank is likely to post its biggest annual loss on record this year.
Although this result will not have an impact on Swiss monetary policy, it may prevent the SNB from distributing dividends to the Swiss federal and cantonal governments (depending on the SNB’s year-end earnings). This may be the second time in its more than 100-year history that the SNB has had to stop paying dividends to the Swiss federal and cantonal governments.
