oldest swiss banks
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Which is the Oldest Swiss Bank?

February 14, 2023 - Benjamin Manz

Find a list of the oldest Swiss banks, organized by their dates of founding.

Switzerland is a banking capital. From private banks to cantonal banks, the country hosts countless financial services providers. Many of these financial firms have been in operation for centuries. The oldest Swiss banks are listed in table 1.

Table 1: Oldest Swiss banks by year of founding

Year of founding Name of bank Kind of bank
1750 Rahn and Bodmer Private bank
1796 Lombard Odier & Cie Private bank
1805 Pictet & Cie (originally De Candolle, Turrettini & Cie) Private bank
1812 Sparkasse Schwyz Regional bank
1813 Dreyfus Sons & Co Private bank
1814 Caisse d'Epargne Riviera Regional bank
1815 Bank Bonhôte & Cie Private bank
1816 Clientis Sparcassa 1816 (originally Ersparungs-Cassa Wädenschwil) Regional bank
1817 Ersparniskasse Schaffhausen Regional bank
1819 Ersparniskasse Speicher Regional bank
1819 Mirabaud & Cie Private bank
1819 Regiobank Solothurn (originally Ersparniskasse der Stadt Solothurn) Regional bank
1820 Bank Zimmerberg (originally Ersparnis Kasse für die Gemeinde Horgen) Regional bank
1820 Burgerliche Ersparniskasse Bern Regional bank
1821 Bank EEK Regional bank

 

 

The five biggest Swiss banks, on the other hand, are relatively young compared to the oldest Swiss financial firms. The years in which the largest Swiss banks were established are shown in table 2.

 Table 2: Biggest Swiss banks by year of founding

Year of founding Name of bank Kind of bank
1856 Credit Suisse Private bank
1862 UBS Private bank
1870 Zürcher Kantonalbank Cantonal bank
1899 Raiffeisen Schweiz Bank cooperative
1906 Postfinance Federal bank

 

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