Indian-linked funds in Swiss banks surged, but most belong to institutions, not individuals hiding wealth.
NEW DELHI: The sharp increase in Indian-linked funds held in Swiss banks at the end of 2024 has once again revived a familiar perception: that Indian individuals are moving large sums of money abroad and parking it in Switzerland. However, official data released by the Swiss National Bank (SNB) shows that this assumption is not supported by facts.
According to the latest data from the SNB, the total liabilities of Swiss banks to Indian-domiciled clients rose to CHF 3.546 billion (approximately Rs 37,600 crore) by the end of 2024— more than triple the CHF 1.046 billion reported in 2023 and close to the CHF 3.83 billion peak recorded in 2021. While the headline figure may appear to validate concerns around offshore wealth flight, a detailed reading of the data tells a different story.
Nearly 85% of these liabilities—around CHF 3.02 billion—belong to Indiandomiciled banks and financial institutions. These are linked to legitimate activities such as trade financing, custodial holdings, treasury operations, and the expansion of business activities of India-based entities and Indian nationals operating businesses from outside India. The individual component—measured via customer deposits—stood at only CHF 346 million (roughly Rs 3,670 crore), up 11% from CHF 310 million in 2023.
Although not insignificant, this figure remains a small portion of the total. Additionally, CHF 41 million was held via fiduciary or trust structures, and CHF 135 million was accounted for through bonds and other financial instruments—further tilting the balance towards institutional rather than personal flows. In context, the 2024 rebound follows a two-year decline. After peaking in 2021, Indian-linked Swiss bank liabilities fell to CHF 1.17 billion in 2022 and further dropped to CHF 1.046 billion in 2023.
The SNB did not specify the share of individual deposits for 2022, but the available trendline suggests the current rise is institutional in nature and not driven by private offshore savings. Importantly, the SNB data is based on domicile, not nationality. Indian subsidiaries of foreign entities, as well as branches of Indian companies abroad, are included in the total. The dataset does not distinguish declared from undeclared funds, nor does it imply illegality or tax evasion. India and Switzerland have been automatic exchange partners under the OECD’s AEOI framework since 2018.
Under this agreement, Swiss banks report account data of Indian residents annually to Indian tax authorities. This arrangement significantly limits the possibility of Indian residents using Swiss banks to quietly store undeclared wealth, as was common in earlier decades. Despite the renewed public focus on Swiss bank figures, there is little in the 2024 data to support the idea of a large-scale outflow of hidden personal wealth. The jump in total funds is real—but the money is, for the most part, institutional. The perception of a renewed offshore stash does not hold up to the numbers.
