Swiss banks drive customers into pawnshops

Cedric Domeniconi of Auto-Pfandhaus.ch notes an increase in pledges of valuables and sees the credit crunch of banks as the cause: "Whereas in the past income bottlenecks or family emergencies were the classic reasons for a pawn credit, in recent years it has increasingly been massive problems with Swiss banks that have caused customers to get into financial difficulties and turn to us in their desperation." Stricter lending guidelines are only one reason.

Order lost due to blocked funds

Often, banks even block customer funds that have been confirmed as unobjectionable for months and for no apparent reason. "Again and again, we encounter cases where bank customers can't even access their own money, for example if it was paid in from abroad." This affects private individuals as well as entrepreneurs. As an example, Domeniconi cites a house sale in France and a down payment for an industrial installation from Germany. "The banks had acknowledged the harmlessness of the funds to their customers well in advance and confirmed the release of the amounts in writing. But when the payments arrived, the funds were nevertheless blocked for months without justification." This led to one or more cars having to be pawned. In one case, an entrepreneur even lost a large order and had to repay his customer's down payment - with corresponding further bureaucratic adversities.

More restrictive attitude of banks

"Switzerland is an SME country and lives from exports. If companies can no longer do business because the banks explicitly oppose them, this can mean the end for individuals - especially for smaller companies," Domeniconi said. "Small and medium-sized companies are the engine of our economy. Yet banks are increasingly putting obstacles in their way." Yet the increasingly impersonal relationship with customers - personal contacts are giving way to call center agents - and rising bureaucracy are by no means the only reasons for the difficulties. Self-employed people and SMEs in particular are receiving loans less and less frequently because the relevant collateral is being assessed more restrictively. "A long-standing customer relationship and good business performance are becoming less important," says Domeniconi. "The increasingly strict regulatory requirements have also contributed to this." Yet the money would be available and the interest rates low.

A trip to the pawnshop as an alternative?

Banks are increasingly passing on the problem of negative interest rates to their customers when they have high deposits. But they are not even stopping at their own employees: "More and more banks are obliging their own employees to take out any loans only with their employer. But many have reservations about disclosing a personal financial problem or applying for a second loan from their employer. They fear for their reputation within the bank and among colleagues. Going to another bank, meanwhile, is not the answer: thanks to ZEK, the reporting and information organization on prospective borrowers, lessees and credit card holders, banks have full control over lending activities and would notice immediately. "The way money lending is being handled is taking on some absurd features," Domeniconi says. "While the banks want to lend the money as lucratively as possible because of the continuing low interest rates, they are not afraid to contractually bind even their own employees. On the other hand, they are getting stingier in lending." Of course, stricter laws such as the Consumer Credit Act, which was revised in 2016, are also a reason for this. The two-week waiting period alone makes it impossible to get money quickly. "But the official mold should not lead to customers not even being able to dispose of their own money and instead having to pawn their cars with us," the co-founder of Auto-Pfandhaus.ch points out.

More information: www.auto-pfandhaus.ch