WIR Bank

Management

Germann Wiggli ( Chief Executive Officer )

The WIR Bank is a Swiss SME bank with seven branches, which emerged from the self-help organization WIR economic circle cooperative.

History

The economy Ring cooperative was founded in 1934 by Werner Zimmermann and 15 other people. The idea goes back to the Danish JAK- cooperative ( the so-called " Afregningscentralen " ), a similar non-cash accounting system was also initiated the 1934. Zimmermann and Paul Enz founding member watched this system in Denmark in 1934 during two study tours on-site. In 1936 she was awarded the status of a bank.

During the world economic crisis and the resulting tight liquidity company hoarding their money rather than invest it, what the scarcity of money supply increased. With the foundation of the economy Ring cooperative responded tradespeople to this crisis with this self-help initiative. To do something about the hoarding, the complementary currency WE was created, based on the free money theory of Silvio Gesell. The value of the WE is linked to the Swiss franc ( CHF 1 WE = 1 ). A main feature is the interest of freedom. As an incentive to quickly spend the money again and among the participants - small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs ) in Switzerland - to provide sales, balances do not earn interest on the accounts. In the early days was paid to the credit not only no interest, but a retainer fee required. This should increase the incentive even further to bring the money back into circulation quickly. While the circulation safeguard was abandoned in 1948, the WIR credit will not accrue interest today.

In 1998 she changed her name to WIR Bank cooperative. In addition to normal banking activities, she still maintains the WIR system, which aims to promote SMEs.

Pay

At the end of 2012, the WE Bank reported total assets of 4.013 billion francs, of which 855.3 million francs on loans in WIR ( currency code CHW ) and 2.67 billion on loans in CHF. A total of 2012, about 1.46 billion Swiss francs equivalent were reacted with WE.

The WIR- clearing system

The WIR system provides the WIR money tied up in the circle of participants purchasing power dar. According to the Articles is intended to promote the connected participants to make their purchasing power each subservient by the WIR system and to keep them in their own ranks in order to participants to gain additional revenue.

The WIR- clearing system works as cashless payments under the WIR participants. Balances and charges to the accounts of participants will be posted at the headquarters of WIR Bank in Basel. A checkbook -like paper, the posting order, or the WE - payment certificate serve as means of payment. With the WE - card, which is used mainly in the catering and retail trade, the customers make pure WE payments, combined WIR-/CHF-Zahlungen and pure CHF payments. Payments in WE and CHF can also be performed by means of electronic banking and since mid-2008 by means of Internet banking.

At the WIR system take part against 50,000 SMEs in all sectors and regions of Switzerland. In addition, over 10,000 WE subscriber employees with its own WIR account. Each WIR participants puts his individual WIR acceptance rate fixed, the rate at which he wants to accept payment in WIR (but at least 30 % on the first 3,000 francs a business ). Here, a WIR francs is equivalent to a Swiss franc.

Potential WIR business partners can be found on the electronic WE marketplace, in the publications WIRINFO and WIRGASTRO as well as with the so-called WIRGASTRO App for iPhone and Android. In addition, every four years WE - sale Fairs in Lucerne, Zofingen, Bern and Zurich are carried out in Switzerland, where the WIR participant may act as exhibitors and customers.

The WIR francs was awarded the 2004 three -letter code CHW ISO 4217 equivalent in their local currency CHF (Swiss Francs). To shop or hotel entrances in Switzerland is pointed with the WE - Signet on the way to pay for the services in whole or in part in WIR money.

WIR- money creation

WIR- credits are created through loans from the WIR Bank, the borrower of the WIR Bank pledged an asset, that is a certainty, as it would do in a normal commercial bank also.

The loans come from direct, private money creation of the WIR Bank. The WIR Bank in the WIR system, a similar money creation function as the Swiss National Bank as a central bank, the Swiss franc. Accounts are opened frequently either in the context of an initial business transaction with WIR money or a loan.

WIR- credits have no coverage through Swiss francs. The WIR loans, depending on the type of loan, secured by mortgages, bank guarantees, life insurance, etc.. In WE - range inter alia, construction, mortgage, current account and investment loans as well as an ECO Credit available.

The WIR Bank arising from their creation of money no credit or refinancing costs. You yourself must therefore apply no interest on all the loans. Precisely for this reason, they can put their loans to very low interest rates available.

Although a WIR francs is equivalent to a Swiss franc, the WIR franc is valued and exchanged in practice to less than one franc. The Head of the former economic ring has therefore in 1973 the participants to trade from WIR money prohibited against Swiss francs or other currencies. For violations of the terms and conditions threaten expulsion from the WIR system and large penalties. The WIR Bank is so rigorously against the trafficking of WIR- credit, because these practices undermine the WIR system, the WIR money works, paradoxically, because no one wants it, and thus the pressure on suppliers is created to accept it.

Opening for non-members

From 1997 he was the gradual introduction of the WIR Bank to the Swiss banking business. Conventional banking products in the area of ​​savings and pensions were included in the range of WIR Bank. In 2000, the opening of the WIR Bank for the general public took place. Since that time, the investment and pension products and the domestic payments system of WIR Bank are also available for individuals who have no relationship to the WIR- clearing.

Customer deposits represent the WIR Bank is an important source of funding for the CHF loans, which in turn are connected to the SME and retail clients available. New and renovated buildings and renovation funded the WIR Bank with total combined financing in the form of WE and CHF loans. These are since 2005 under certain conditions, private clients offered.