Swiss banks have decided to turn down U.S citizens who want to open up offshore bank accounts in Switzerland. This is due to the U.S’s new foreign account regulations for banks to disclose the information of american accounts. This could be an opportunity for Americans to switch over to Bitcoin.
Privacy concerns
According to Bloomberg, the U.S ambassador in Switzerland has sent numerous letters to Swiss bank executives on the challenges Americans already have when opening a bank account in an attempt to get Swiss banks to rethink their decision of not accepting American clients.
Suzan LeVine, U.S ambassador to Switzerland said in a statement:
"We have been pleased with the response of banks such as UBS, Credit Suisse and Corner Bank who, when we asked if they'd start serving U.S. citizens as customers again, put procedures in place with which to do so,"
Switzerland itself, famous for its classified banking, signed an agreement with the U.S Treasury to co-operate with U.S tax acts but with this, it seems that Swiss banks find it breaking their promise for confidentiality and have just stopped accepting clients from the U.S altogether rather than complying.
Americans could turn to Bitcoin
Over the years, Bitcoin has gained users world wide due to its privacy benefits and ability to create transactions with a lower fee than traditional banks, in less time. With 464 Bitcoin ATMs in the U.S, Americans can seek an alternative right in their own country.
This could be an opportunity for Americans to switch over to Bitcoin which offers the similar secrecy features that can be compared to Swiss banks. It can even be more secure than traditional banks because you control your own funds. A Bitcoin wallet is a bank itself and cannot be accessed by anybody else except by those who have the wallet’s private keys
Another recession?
Numerous sources have said that there might be a recession in 2017 due to Brexit, Europe’s banking troubles and slow economic growth. Sources include BoA Merrill Lynch and Bloomberg saying that a recession might come in the next 4 years.
Economists continue to forecast a potential recession and investors have started to buy up commodities such as gold which will rise in value and are recession-proof but lately, Bitcoin has been considered due to its Blockchain technology and since it isn’t backed by anything, it is technically recession-proof.