Europe's news in English

COPY LINK

CHINA

Swiss banks aim to boost Chinese yuan biz

Swiss banks want to become important traders of financial products and services based on the Chinese yuan, a sector association leader said Wednesday.

Published: 21 November 2012 18:01 CET

Swiss banks aim to boost Chinese yuan biz

The banks "would like to be the second main centre (overseas for yuan trading) after London," Swiss Banking Association head Claude-Alain Margelisch told reporters in Geneva.

Pointing out that Britain is currently home to the most active foreign trading of the yuan, Margelisch said that a delegation from his organization had recently travelled to China to secure access to such financial operations and had received "positive signals" from Beijing.

"The Chinese authorities indicated that there was no need for a formal agreement on their part to be active in the market," he said.

"We are going to study the market right away."

While no formal agreement was needed with China's central bank, Margelisch noted that if they wanted to trade yuan, Swiss banks would need a robust banking presence in Hong Kong, the main trading hub for China's currency.

He forecast that the yuan would play "an increasingly important role in international trade over the coming years."

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.

Become a Member to leave a comment.

Geneva commuters warned over public transport ticket scam

The ‘real’ cost of a yearly subscription to the TPG Unireso network costs 500 francs for adults, and 400 francs for pensioners and juniors.

So an offer that is hundreds of francs cheaper is obviously very appealing to those who have never heard of an old adage, “if it’s too good to be true, it’s probably isn’t.”

The fraudulent Facebook page, with a very realistic looking TPG logo, offers, as a special promotion, an annual travel card for the mere 2.35 francs. Fake profiles have written positive comments under the offer.

Fake TPG offer. Facebook public page

To benefit from the ‘last day’ of this incredible offer, customers must click on a link, which should raise red flags in even the most gullible individuals: it leads not to the official ‘tpg.ch’ address but to an external page, with a ‘com’ rather than ‘ch’ domain.

Once on this page, the still clueless customer learns that only 500 of the ‘special-offer’ cards remain available, so they must be purchased quickly.

But once they are on the payment page, they read that this is a three-month trial membership for 3 francs (not 2.35, but still suspiciouly cheap), and that if the membership is not cancelled by then (not sure how, since this is a fake), they will be charged 71 francs every 14 days.

The TPG does not have any figures on how many victoms fell prey to this scam, but the company’s spokesperson, François Mutter, said 134 customers “have contacted us to inquire about this offer.”

Who is behind this scam?

It is not known, but the site’s server is based in Saint Petersburg, Russia, Mutter said, adding that the TPG has informed the host as well as the Federal Office for Cybercrime.

But the scam is still running, and on a larger scale than just in Geneva.

According to Mutter, Belgian and French versions are also circulating.

Geneva police told 20 Minutes news platform that the primary goal of this scam (as countless others’) is to retrieve confidential banking information from their victims

The closure of the site can be requested from the host, “but the effect is often temporary. New sites will appear.”

In theory at least, the Public Prosecutor’s Office can open proceedings against the criminals and work with local authorities to trace the perpetrators — however, only if the sites are hosted in countries where international collaboration in these matters exists.

But, according to the police, “this is Russia.”

One of many

Unfortunately, this particular scam one is only the tip of the iceberg.

Countless others have been perpetrated in Switzerland in past years, and still are on-going currently.

You can find more about them here:

READ ALSO: The common scams foreigners in Switzerland need to be aware of

How can you avoid falling victim to a scam in Switzerland?

The most obvious piece of advice is to use common sense.

It may not always be easy to spot scammers, however, because many emails look like they come from official sources like the government or police, but neither would contact you by email and threaten you with terrible consequences if you don’t pay up.

If not sure about the legitimacy of ‘official’-looking email or message, always call the supposed sender to check.

The important thing is that you immediately delete any suspicious emails and block the sender from contacting you again.

Also, be vigilant about divulging any of your personal information and financial data to unknown callers, or individuals showing up at your doorstep.

SHOW COMMENTS

Url copied to clipboard!