Fri, Dec 2nd 2022
The FDA approves a groundbreaking Swiss health therapy involving fecal matter, why a group of Swiss say the country should move closer to the EU, and more in our roundup of news from November 30 – December 2.
Russians: Swiss banks hold $50B in Russian deposits
More than 100 Russian businesses and individuals reported this week that they have more than 46 billion Swiss francs ($50 billion) in Swiss bank accounts. The report is the most detailed financial accounting of Russian money in Switzerland since the country invaded Ukraine in February. In June, Switzerland asked all banks to report their Russian holdings and further banned the banks from accepting more than CHF 100,00 from Russians. In November, Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) reported that the government had frozen about CHF 7.5 billion of Russian assets. “The sanctioned amount is only a fraction of all Russian assets in Switzerland,” said Erwin Bollinger, SECO’s head of bilateral economic relations. The Swiss Bankers Association says the country holds at least 150 billion Swiss francs in Russian assets. Read more.
U.S. eyes Swiss company with Russian ties
‘Call to Action’ group urges Switzerland to repair EU relations
A group of nearly 200 Swiss figures, including many former Swiss presidents, this week launched a “Call to Action” campaign for the government to strengthen its relationship with the European Union and clarify its future with Europe. The campaigners say that they represent a majority of Swiss voters, whereas in 1992 Swiss voters rejected joining the European Economic Area by a 50.3% majority. Since then, more than 120 bilateral accords have regulated relations between Switzerland and the European market. Last year, Bern and Brussels broke off negotiations amidst a diplomatic deadlock. The “Call to Action” campaigners say there is “too much at stake in view of the worsening global crises” to not address the stalemate. Read more.
FDA approves groundbreaking Swiss fecal therapy
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week approved Switzerland-based Ferring Pharmaceuticals’ innovative fecal transplant therapy for bacterial infections – the first therapy of its kind to be permitted in the U.S. The fecal therapy, called , Rebyota, is used to treat and reduce the reoccurrence of Clostridium difficile (C. diff or CDI) which causes life-threatening diarrhea. Rebyota delivers good gut bacteria distilled through fecal matter from healthy donors to patients. In the U.S. alone, C. diff accounts for roughly 30,000 deaths each year. The move “represents an important milestone, as it provides an additional approved option to prevent recurrent CDI,” said Peter Marks, director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. Read more.
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