Swiss admit bank knew Nazi gold was stolen
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.ZURICH (Reuters) - Switzerland's central bank knew much of the gold it bought from Nazi Germany was stolen but turned a blind eye to its origins, according to a study by government-appointed experts.
The 190-page report confirmed earlier findings that Switzerland was the leading centre of German gold transactions abroad during the Second World War and the Swiss National Bank was the biggest client, buying $280m worth at wartime prices ($2.5bn now).
Swiss officials said, however, that they saw no need to make more amends for neutral Switzerland's wartime role.
The report broke new terrain by being the first study sanctioned by the Swiss government to state clearly that Swiss National Bank wartime managers knew they were buying stolen gold from the Reichsbank, Hitler's central bank.
"Although it was plain for all to see that Germany was acquiring gold by illegal means, the SNB authorities appear to have remained wedded to 'business as usual'," the panel of nine Swiss, US, Israeli, Polish and British historians said.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments