Money in Swiss banks: India ranks 77th, at 0.06% of all foreign funds

India has moved down three places to 77th rank in terms of money parked by its citizens and enterprises with Swiss banks at the end of 2019, while the UK has retained its top position, as per the l atest data from Switzerland's central bank.

India was ranked 74th in the previous year.

An analysis of the latest annual banking statistics released by the Swiss National Bank (SNB) showed that India remains ranked very low when it comes to money parked by Indian individuals and enterprises in Swiss banks, including through their India-based branches, accounting for just about 0.06% of the aggregate funds parked by all foreign clients of Switzerland-based banks.

In comparison, the top-ranked UK accounted for close to 27% of the total foreign funds parked with Swiss banks at the end of 2019.

According to the latest SNB data, funds parked by Indian individuals and enterprises in Swiss banks, including through India-based branches, fell by 5.8% in 2019 to 899 million Swiss francs (Rs 6,625 crore).

The data is for 'total liabilities' of Swiss banks towards Indian clients takes into account all types of funds of Indian customers at Swiss banks, including deposits from individuals, banks and enterprises. This also includes data for branches of Swiss banks in India, as well as non-deposit liabilities.

These are official figures reported by banks to the SNB and do not indicate the quantum of the much-debated alleged black money held by Indians in Switzerland. These figures also do not include the money that Indians, NRIs or others might have in Swiss banks in names of third-country entities.

Among the top-ranked jurisdictions, the UK is followed by the US, West Indies, France and Hong Kong in the top five.

The top-five countries alone account for more than 50% of the aggregate foreign funds parked with the Swiss banks, while the top-10 account for nearly two-thirds.