Services have always been difficult to pitch because of the sheer fact that quality for them is difficult to measure due to their intangibility. So at times it boils down to the order of priority and the relativity of what one refers to as outstanding quality. Banking is an industry which has been fiercely competitive in this area, offering a bundle of services that competitors do not. So what sets apart a bank and a particular banking system are the critical unique differentiators.At the pinnacle of this in the banking world sit the Swiss banks due to the code of secrecy that they stick to, bestowed upon them by the softer norms in the Swiss banking system. Secrecy is why the Swiss banking system has always stood apart and has managed to beat even the likes of Cayman Islands. But this very foundation of the Swiss Banking system is jittery now as US Tax authorities have demanded UBS to release the names of 52000 Americans who are suspected of opening secret accounts to evade taxes. UBS needs business in US right now and it cannot turn a deaf year to the US Tax authorities and has thus agreed to release 250 names.
But the earth shattering repercussion for this will be that UBS will have a chink in the armour and there will be no further reason for customers to do business with Swiss banks. Secrecy is their business and if it goes away then it will take the entire Swiss banking system with it. What surfaces will be a whole lot of chaos for the Swiss banks and unimaginable volume of business for the banks in the Cayman Islands.
Posted by: Rahul
