In a world that already makes little sense to most, Credit Suisse just pushed the envelope a little further. The bank has just announced that going forward it will be charging for firms to hold a CHF cash balance - i.e. the bank, given the already-negative Swiss government bond yields, has moved to its own NIRP for its clients. The need to do this suggests an overwhelming desire for short-term safety that flies in the face of the seeming level of complacency that exists in the European bond (and stock markets). As we have warned before, it seems that the currency wars that appear to have escalated have now started the 'capital control' wars as CS (and implicitly the SNB) adds this negative interest rate 'charge' to its already pegged currency in the vain hope of managing the unmanageable flow of safe-haven-seeking cash.
- CREDIT SUISSE INFORMS BANK CLIENTS OF NEGATIVE RATES ON CHF FROM DEC.10
- CREDIT SUISSE INFORMS CLIENTS IN SWIFT NOTICE, CONFIRMED BY BNK
In other words, Europe is so fixed, Swiss banks are furiously doing everything in their power to halt the dumping of EUR in exchange for CHF, and to push everyone, kicking and screaming, into the absolutely safety and well-being of the Euro, which according to Eurozone politicians is strong as diamond, which is vernacular for as close to collapse as the next Greek popular election.