Foreign-currency gains lift nine-month profit to CHF 44.2 billion
Foreign-currency positions generated CHF 43.3 billion of the Swiss National Bank (SNB)'s CHF 44.2 billion profit for the first nine months of 2026. Exchange-rate gains outweighed losses on interest-bearing securities.
Currency gains outweigh bond losses
Exchange-rate gains reached CHF 29.8 billion.
Foreign-currency positions also earned CHF 10.7 billion in interest and CHF 2.3 billion in dividends, against CHF 0.7 billion in interest expenses.
Equity securities and instruments gained CHF 23.7 billion, while interest-bearing securities and instruments lost CHF 22.6 billion.
Gold generated a CHF 1.2 billion valuation gain on unchanged holdings.
Its price reached CHF 112,118 per kilogram at September-end, versus CHF 110,919 at end-2025.
Swiss franc positions earned CHF 0.1 billion, mainly from sight-deposit remuneration and liquidity-absorbing operations using repos and SNB debt certificates.
Nine-month profit compared with CHF 12,627.6 million a year earlier; the interim accounts are unaudited.
Balance sheet expands as portfolio shrinks
Third-quarter profit totaled CHF 19,074.1 million, down from CHF 27,930.8 million in 2025.
Total assets reached CHF 945,829.0 million, versus CHF 893,857.5 million at end-2025; equity rose to CHF 206,699.5 million from CHF 166,457.2 million.
Swiss franc securities fell to CHF 2,776.5 million from CHF 3,942.9 million.
The SNB will reduce this portfolio over coming quarters while limiting market disruption.
Its own SNB Bills now perform the securities' former collateral role in liquidity-absorbing repos; franc bond purchases remain available.
Profit is not distributable income
The CHF 44.2 billion result precedes the allocation to currency reserve provisions, which the SNB will set at year-end.
The SNB says gold, foreign-exchange and capital markets dominate its earnings, making large fluctuations normal.
It therefore cautions against extrapolating the interim result to the full year.