Swiss Bitcoiners Push for Vote to Add Bitcoin to Swiss National Bank’s Balance Sheet

Jimmy Aki
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On April 20, a group of Swiss Bitcoiners started a new push to persuade the Swiss National Bank (SNB) to add Bitcoin to its reserves. Their strategy involves a proposed referendum to amend the country’s constitution.

Swiss Bitcoiners Claim BTC Will Protect the Nation’s “Sovereignty and Neutrality”

According to Swiss media outlet Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ), the group of Swiss Bitcoin supporters is led by 2B4CH founder and board member of the Bitcoin Association Switzerland Yves Bennaïm, who claims that the inclusion of Bitcoin in the Swiss National Bank’s reserves would protect the country’s “sovereignty and neutrality.”

“The Swiss National Bank creates sufficient currency reserves from its income; part of these reserves is held in gold. In the future, it will be called “in gold and Bitcoin.” We are in the process of completing the organizational preparations for the committee and preparing the documents that must be submitted to the State Chancellery to start the process,” Bennaïm added.

The Swiss National Bank currently holds part of its reserves in gold. Bennaïm and other Swiss Bitcoiners envision a future where reserves are held in “gold and Bitcoin.”

Luzius Meisser, president of the asset manager Bitcoin Suisse, supports this vision and plans to advocate for Bitcoin as a reserve currency at the SNB’s general meeting scheduled for April 26, 2024.

Meisser argued that Bitcoin is more sustainable in the long term than Euro and Dollar investments, which can be devalued by inflation, thus, including Bitcoin in reserves would indicate Switzerland’s independence from the European Central Bank and strengthen its neutrality.

A constitution amendment in Switzerland requires a national referendum, where the electorate is invited to vote on a particular proposal. In this case, Swiss Bitcoiners must gather at least 100,000 valid signatures from the electorate to bring a referendum forward, representing 1.15% of the country’s total population of 8.77 million people.

If successful, the SNB would be mandated to hold Bitcoin in its reserves.

This latest push aligns with a global trend of integrating cryptocurrencies into financial portfolios following the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approval of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on January 10, 2024.

Swiss Proposal Stirs Concerns on BTC Volatility

The proposal by the Swiss-based Bitcoiners has sparked concerns regarding the volatility of Bitcoin and its potential impact on national financial security. Critics argue that Bitcoin’s price volatility could affect the “fiscal stability” necessary for central banks.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin supporters argue that the risks can be mitigated with adequate management and regulatory frameworks. They suggest including Bitcoin in the bank’s reserves would diversify assets and showcase Switzerland’s commitment to lead financial technology and digital currencies.

Interestingly, other countries are considering this same move with Switzerland, which entails the integration of Bitcoin into financial portfolios, and experts like Robert Kiyosaki have been advocating its increased investment.

On April 15, Hong Kong approved spot Bitcoin and spot Ether ETFs, becoming the first Asian country to achieve this feat. This greenlight integrates Bitcoin and Ether into the country’s financial assets and enables traders to invest safely.

Additionally, El Salvador ranks as the first nation to accept Bitcoin as a legal tender and currently has a range of $1/2 billion worth of BTC stored in the reserves.

About Jimmy Aki PRO INVESTOR

Based in the UK, Jimmy is an economic researcher with outstanding hands-on and heads-on experience in Macroeconomic finance analysis, forecasting and planning. He has honed his skills having worked cross-continental as a finance analyst, which gives him inter-cultural experience. He currently has a strong passion for regulation and macroeconomic trends as it allows him peek under the global bonnet to see how the world works.