Italians go to Switzerland to buy gold

Italians worried about the outcome of the referendum are driving to Switzerland to buy gold, it reportsGerman Wirtschaftswoche. At the branch of gold trader Pro-Aurum in the Swiss city of Lugano, Italians are queuing up to convert their euros into precious metals. Lugano is close to the Italian border and therefore attracts many customers from across the border. 

"Normally, about 20% of customers come from Italy and 80% from Switzerland, but that ratio has been completely reversed in the run-up to the referendum on December 4", gold dealer Robert Hartmann of Pro-Aurum told Wirtschaftswoche. The office needs to have more gold bars and Gold Coins order to meet the sudden increase in demand.

Buying gold

The example of Brexit is still fresh in the minds of the Italians. They are worried and therefore convert some of their assets into precious metals. They prefer to do this in Switzerland, because they buy gold anonymously in their own country limited up to €3,000 at a time and because the tax authorities have recently Watching if you withdraw more than €5,000 per month in cash.

In Switzerland, these rules are less strict and it is possible to transfer an amount of up to €10,0000 across the border to Buy Gold AnonymouslyMany Italians also take advantage of the opportunity to transfer their savings from an Italian bank to a Swiss bank.

Referendum

Italian Prime Minister Renzi has said he will resign if the referendum on amending the constitution fails. That promise brings with it a lot of uncertainty, because in the polls, Beppe Grillo's 5-star movement is ahead. This political party opposes the European Union and advocates greater independence for Italy. This creates uncertainty for banks and for Italy's position within the EU.

According to the Financial Times as many as eight different banks in Italy could be in trouble if the government falls and new elections have to be called. Italian banks have already lost more than half of their value this year due to their large exposure to bad loans. Monte Dei Paschi di Siena, the third largest bank in the country, saw 14% of all savings disappear in one year. This bank faces the challenge of raising €5 billion in new capital before the end of the year.

Italians buy gold en masse in Switzerland