So....we've all heard about "swiss bank accounts," so having one is supposed to be a big deal,…read moreright? Judging from the process of opening one, that certainly seems to be the case.
First of all, you can't simply waltz into a bank to make an account, regardless of how many or few people are there. You also can't join appointments with your friends or colleagues (as I would find out later, the process is quite a bit more personal than, say, an American bank). Three of us went in to make appointments, and were told to come back in 30 minute intervals the following day.
When I arrived for my appointment, I was led into a separate conference room by the lady opening my account. She opened her laptop, and proceeded to ask a series of questions that, at first seemed relevant to banking, but quickly turned a bit personal. Where was I before I came to Switzerland? What visa was I on? Which state in the US did I live, and which school did I attend? What did I do and where did I live before that? Where do my parents live? Are either of my parents politicians? She wasn't actually typing anything but seemed to be concentrating on something on the laptop screen, so I had trouble telling whether the questions were an attempt to make small talk in a way that was culturally unfamiliar to me, or if these questions were actually relevant to opening an account in Switzerland. I actually didn't mind the personal nature of the questions, but not knowing the purpose, had trouble figuring out the tone with which I should respond (i.e., "I moved between Korea and the US a couple of times when I was young, so that was kind of cool" vs. "I lived in Washington, DC from [mo/year] to [mo/year], prior to which I lived in...").
All in all, I had a bank account application in about 30 minutes, and despite my confusion about the process, everyone that I interacted with at the bank was very friendly and helpful. I'm not a big privacy person, but if you're one of those people who think that service providers have no business knowing anything personal about you, you have been warned.
Oh, and there seem to be additional problems to opening a bank account if you're American, have permanent residency/greencard in the US, or have "substantial ties" to the US. You are also required to close your bank account prior to leaving the country.
Phew, I am now the proud owner of a swiss bank account!
