Custody fees at Swiss banks

I am going into trading hands-on, starting as a hobby and moving towards becoming a serious trader (I hope :). What are my options for custodial accounts in Switzerland and more importantly, what do they cost? I don’t expect to hold tens of thousands of francs in securities at the start, if that make any difference. Has anyone got experience with Swiss custodian banks and their costs? Which would you recommend?

You can get an idea of the custody fees at a number of Swiss banks and brokers here: /en/custody-fees-comparison

Hi forum members,

I am German and recently moved to Switzerland. I am wondering whether or not it makes sense for me to open a share safekeeping account in Switzerland.

One of my work colleagues told me that in Switzerland you do not have to pay capital gains taxes like you do in Germany. According to them, dividends are taxed like in Germany.

Another question I have is whether I should open an account with an online broker or just open a safekeeping account at my bank (Credit Suisse). I plan to hold ETFs in my account. I also want the flexibility to trade CH, US and DE stocks 2-4 times per month.

What would be the smartest solution, in your opinions?

Thanks in advance

>I am wondering whether or not it makes sense for me to open a share safekeeping account in Switzerland.

No, all swiss brokers are way too expensive.

In fact this is even by law - Stempelabgabe alone that swiss brokers have to charge is orders of magnitude more expensive than what discount foreign brokers charge you in total for transactions

>Another question I have is whether I should open an account with an online broker or just open a safekeeping account at my bank (Credit Suisse).

Big swiss banks are the worst, as a commoner you might as well have to sell a kidney to afford their trading services!

> One of my work colleagues told me that in Switzerland you do not have to pay capital gains taxes like you do in Germany.

Correct. But it has nothing to do with the location of your broker. So shop around accross borders and choose wisely

>Another question I have is whether I should open an account with an online broker or just open a safekeeping account at my bank (Credit Suisse).

This is actually a good question. If you don't mind buying stocks in the street name (kept in a nominee account in the brokers name), then use the cheapest online broker. If you want to buy shares that actually give you a vote in the company, choose your broker more carefully. Conventional brokers (like big banks) may be the only way to go. In fact, many cheap brokers don't give you the option of keeping your registered shares in their accounts because their "custody accounts" are really collective "nominee accounts." Needless to say, the first option is cheaper, but it really depends on what you need.

>I plan to hold ETFs in my account. I also want the flexibility to trade CH, US and DE stocks 2-4 times per month.

For ETF shares, the same applies as above. For trading stocks 2-4 times per month, use a cheap online broker because bank fees are killjoys. Registered shares only really make sense if you buy to hold. If you buy and sell every month, the nominee account option is definitely cheaper. Of course if you are okay with street name shares and aren't keeping them long enough to get dividends, you could just trade CFDs and do away with custodial fees altogether.

Stock CFDs do earn dividends. Unless you have sell positions, in which case you pay dividends, as you do when you short sell stocks. You also skip out on stamp taxes when you use CFDs instead of buying shares. I think overnight fees for buy positions are the biggest disadvantage with CFDs if you invest long term. If you hold positions for a long time then these will cost more than custodial fees. You earn overnight interest on sell positions, so no disadvantage there.

> In fact, many cheap brokers don't give you the option of keeping your registered shares in their accounts because their "custody accounts" are really collective "nominee accounts."

Kiddo, that's how all brokers and banks work these days.

You want stocks registered in your name, you need a contract with a central securities depository for that

> Conventional brokers (like big banks) may be the only way to go.

Sales manager from a big bank detected

> you could just trade CFDs and do away with custodial fees altogether.

CFD is not a long term investment, just a debt obligation. Your bucket shop that you bought it from goes bust, and your money goes with them with little recourse.

>If you want to buy shares that actually give you a vote in the company, choose your broker more carefully.

Yes, not a CFD bucket shop for sure if you want to vote