Russian gold continues to migrate to Switzerland – by the way!

Switzerland banned the import of Russian gold in early August. However, Russian gold continues to be imported into Switzerland happily and quite legally. After the import ban was introduced in August, it amounted to 5.7 tons worth more than 312 million francs.

The Swiss import ban is full of loopholes: it only applies to gold exported from Russia after 4 August. If gold comes from Russia but has been in the London vault for a long time, it continues to flow seamlessly into Switzerland.

It is unclear who is behind Russian gold imports in recent months. Large refineries, by their own assurances, were not. “We cut off all business with Russian companies and banks an hour after the news of the outbreak of war on February 24,” says Robin Kolvenbach, 37, co-CEO of Ticino gold refinery Argor-Heraeus. Other major Swiss gold refineries did the same: Russian gold became a hot topic.

gold prospecting in dubai

Private investors who move Russian gold bars from third countries to Switzerland are eligible. In both cases, customs statistics are misleading: the country of origin is given as the country where the gold was produced or where the last significant processing took place. In other words, when gold nuggets are remelted, they receive a new definition of origin.

Therefore, although there is not a single gold mine there, tons of gold is imported from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to Switzerland every month. Dubai has had to listen to criticism for years because gold flows there from troubled sources.

Until now, it was mainly about gold from African countries. But with the outbreak of war in Ukraine, Russia is also looking for new customers. The country produced 300 tons of gold last year, making it the world’s third largest gold producer after China and Australia. Russian gold production is unlikely to decline since the outbreak of war, as exports directly contribute to Putin’s war chest.

Nazi and apartheid gold

Due to Dubai’s dubious reputation as a gold prospector, three of the four major Swiss gold refineries have not accepted any gold from there for years. Only the Ticino refinery Valcambi still buys Dubai gold.

Directly with the “Russia” origin stamp or indirectly via Dubai: Switzerland’s continued import of Russian gold made international headlines in the summer. It also stems from a disgraceful past: Swiss banks and gold refineries handed over gold to the Nazi regime, the apartheid rulers in South Africa, or the rulers of the Soviet Union, critics said, thus keeping those regimes alive. Despite all the objections that Putin’s gold was not involved, the influence of the past still remains.