Geneva and its citizens the Genevan have a long and complicated history. The culture and origin of this city are quite a brain teaser. Today, more than 200,000 people live in Geneva making it the second most populated city in Switzerland. Right after Zurich.

Geneva is one of the big centers of the world, in more ways than you think. Geneva has more to offer than what meets the eye. For example, this city is considered to be a worldwide center for diplomacy.

It has been named that due to the fact that there are many organizations and agencies, like the United Nations and the Red Cross, which have made Geneva their home. Headquarters for these organizations are located in Geneva.

The second most populated city in Switzerland hosts the highest number of international organizations in the world. These global organizations all found home in a couple of cities in the world – New York City, Basel and Strasbourg.

To be compared to these cities is a big achievement and an even greater honor. Geneva is one of the four most decorated cities in the world, organization-wise, that aren’t the capital of a country.

How did Geneva come to be?

It is speculated that the name originates from the Celtic language. However, the first time this name has been mentioned was in the Latin scripture written by Caesar.

Geneva was primarily a Gallic border town until the Romans overtook it converting the town to Christianity under the late Roman Empire. Following the transition of the Roman Empire, it was put under the new rule of the Holy Roman Empire until the late 14th century.

Following the worldwide trends, Geneva has made changes to its laws and institutions forming the Grand Council which acted as a legislature – parliament. 

After the political reformation came the Protestant Reformation as well. Around the time of the Protestant Reformation Geneva made its first step towards becoming a part of the Swiss Confederacy which was actualized a couple of centuries later.

The Republic of Geneva was formed under Protestant leadership, mainly John Calvin, hence a whole new branch of Protestantism called Calvinism. After Calvinism, Catholicism got involved and became the most dominant religion of the city.

Under Catholicism, Geneva became a part of France and ultimately after the Napoleonic Wars Geneva was admitted to the Swiss Confederation. Making June first of 1814 the day Geneva became a part of Switzerland. 

With such a diverse and culturally rich history, there are numerous places you can visit in Geneva. Make sure to check them out if you’re planning on visiting.

How Did Geneva Become a Finance Hub?

We all know that Switzerland is a globally renowned place to go for banking and finance. Big brands and companies have their headquarters in Switzerland, while others originate from Switzerland. For example Nestle and Rolex – 100 % Swiss products.

Rolex, originally from London but they have found their home in Switzerland, Geneva to be exact. The most trustworthy companies regarding watches and chocolate products are both based in Switzerland. 

However Swiss big brands are not limited to watches and chocolate. Big names like Intersport, Logitech and Davidoff have found their home in Switzerland as well. 

At first, what made Geneva what it is today is the stable banking system that it had. Not to mention their relentless drive to keep their clients anonymous and their belongings safe.

The furthest traceable evidence of this great banking system can be found in the early 1700s. The original idea was to protect wealthy European banking interests, however, the Swiss banking secrecy was codified in 1934.

The Federal Act on Banks and Savings Banks is a federal law and act of parliament that is the supreme law that supervises the work of the banks in Switzerland. Banking secrecy is taken really seriously in Switzerland.

The secrecy has remained the sole principle for the Swiss banks since the beginning, and even if institutions or countries criticized the supreme law governing banks in Switzerland. The outcome was always the same.

After the creation of the Federal Act on Banks and Savings Banks, there were only seven times when the act was amended, while it was revised multiple times. However, even when changed the actual impacts were minimal.

The soul of Swiss banking remained the same – preserving clients’ privacy.

Swiss bankers have adopted a doctrine used by doctors and priests. A form of an unwritten law. We could call it a patient-doctor confidentiality agreement. And that social contract was broken only four times since 1934.

The Swiss Bankers Association (SBA) estimated that Swiss banks hold a quarter of total global assets.

Due to the devotion of Swiss bankers to banking secrecy, the banks have been tied to illegal activities.

Under the assumption that suspicious individuals and organizations with criminal intent are opening accounts, because of the no questions asked policy many countries and institutions are pushing for a change in the Swiss banking system. So far, they were not successful.

Geneva Financial Center (GFC)

Advertised as a global and competitive financial center Geneva manages to defend that title quite easily. Ranking fifteenth in the Global Financial Centres Index 2016 it promotes the regional banking interests of the Geneva region.

Created in 1991 by the 80 banks that were members of the Geneva stock exchange today it generates more than 35.000 jobs and accounts for 13% of Geneva’s GDP.

The Geneva Financial Center is fighting to uphold the idea that a strong financial center will benefit the entire economy making its core mission to support the value chain and contribute to the development of an optimal business environment for all financial center partners.

In Conclusion

We know we might have bombarded you with a lot of information. And that right now you are feeling a little overwhelmed. But we will try to summarize this article into one small digestible bite.

What made Geneva the financial giant it is today? There are actually more than one important factors, the first two are connected and much more easily explained than the last one.

The city owes its success partly to the location it was made on, simply put – the locations it was created on made it a crossroad that pulled people through it.

Secondly, this city has existed for more than a couple of centuries and it has seen its fair share of change along the path. From two different polytheistic religions over Christianity, Calvinism, and eventually the path lead them to French Catholicism and Swiss Confederation.

To deal with so many substantial changes over the years and to overcome them is quite a sizable achievement. Geneva has proven that it can stand stoically against any adversity thrown its way.

The last and the most crucial factor of turning Geneva into the financial capital of the world is the vow that Swiss banks decided to uphold – the vow of secrecy.

The client – banker confidentiality agreement could be the sole reason for the enormous success of the Swiss banks. All the banks had safe vaults and security guards but the Swiss banks had an added layer of security which was total anonymity.

Banking secrecy together with the locations of Geneva and its colorful history are the three key factors that propelled Geneva to the top.