SNB Equity Holdings Rise to Record 21% of Portfolio: Chart

(Bloomberg) -- The proportion of equities in the Swiss National Bank’s 743.9 billion-franc ($800 billion) foreign-currency portfolio rose to a record of 21 percent in the fourth quarter. While the SNB has been investing in stocks for more than a decade to diversify its holdings, low bond yields have pushed it to buy more equities. Switzerland’s central bank has a passive approach to its equity holdings and manages its reserves to serve the objectives of monetary policy, using the criteria of security, liquidity and return.

To contact the reporter on this story: Catherine Bosley in Zurich at cbosley1@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Fergal O'Brien at fobrien@bloomberg.net, Sheldon Reback at sreback@bloomberg.net, Zoe Schneeweiss, David Goodman

©2018 Bloomberg L.P.