Last update: 14 October 2020
7 min read

Full Swiss National Bank Meeting Schedule for 2024

Serious investors always take the time to find out the dates on which any important economic news release is likely to be made. The availability of economic calendars on many websites makes it easy for traders to obtain the essential facts that they need to know about which data releases are scheduled to be made on a given date, and they will therefore be able to plan in advance what their trading strategy is going to be at that time.
Any investor knows that there will be a lot more volatility in the financial markets shortly before the time of a scheduled financial news release, and therefore they need to decide whether they are going to place a trade at this riskier but potentially advantageous time, or whether they are going to avoid entering the market until the volatility has subsided once the outcome of the release is known.
The economic calendar outlines all of the most important dates throughout the year on which announcements are scheduled to be made. Some of these events have more impact on asset prices than others, but one of the most important is the SNB meeting, and being aware of when these events are going to be held is very beneficial to any Forex investor who wants to adopt an informed strategy.

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What is the SNB?

snbThe SNB is the Swiss National Bank, which is responsible for conducting Switzerland’s monetary policy decisions. Acting as an independent central bank, the SNB acts in accordance with the country’s interests, with its main goal being to ensure stability of prices while taking into account recent developments in the world economy. The SNB is charged with creating an environment that is conducive to economic growth. There are two head offices of the SNB, one located in Zurich and the other in Berne. There are also representative SNB offices located in St Gallen, Lugano, Lucerne, Lausanne, Geneva and Basel. As well as this, there are 14 agencies that are operated by the nation’s cantonal banks, which help in securing the country’s money supplies.

The SNB is responsible for stabilising prices by making monetary policy decisions and adjusting interest rates in accordance with the current financial climate. They are also responsible for implementing monetary policy and steering liquidity in the money markets, intervening in the Forex market as and when required to influence existing monetary conditions. The SNB also issues Swiss banknotes and manages assets and currency reserves to ensure room for manoeuvre in any monetary policy decisions. The Swiss National Bank creates and implements the regulatory framework of the country’s financial sector, overseeing key financial market infrastructures and cooperating in international monetary assistance.

Who is on the SNB Bank Council?

The SNB’s Bank Council are responsible for overseeing and controlling the Swiss National Bank’s business. Each member of the SNB Bank Council serves a term of 4 years, and their total term of office is not permitted to exceed 12 years.

Мember of the SNB Bank Council Members of the Governing Board
  • Jean Studer: Bank Council President
  • Olivier Steimer: Vice President of the Bank Council
  • Monika Butler: Bank Council Member
  • Barbara Janom Steiner: Bank Council Member
  • Heinz Karrer: Bank Council Member
  • Daniel Lampart: Bank Council Member
  • Christoph Lengwiler: Bank Council Member
  • Shelby R du Pasquier: Bank Council Member
  • Ernst Stocker: Bank Council Member
  • Cedric Tille: Bank Council Member
  • Christian Vitta: Bank Council Member
  • Thomas J Jordan: Governing Board Chairman – Zurich
  • Fritz Zurbrugg: Governing Board Vice Chairman – Berne
  • Andrea M Maechler: Governing Board Member – Zurich
  • Thomas Moser: Alternate Governing Board Member – Zurich
  • Thomas Wiedmer: Alternate Governing Board Member – Berne
  • Dewet Moser: Alternate Governing Board Member – Zurich

How Frequently are SNB Meetings Held?

There are in-depth meetings held by the Swiss National Bank on four occasions through the year, in March, June, September and in December. Every one of these four assessments produces a decision on the interest rates, and following the meeting a medium-term conditional inflation forecast is published. The SNB also holds a press conference afterwards in which they set out the reasons they have for the monetary policy decisions that they have taken during the meeting, and those decisions are also published in full in a Quarterly Bulletin which can be seen online. There are three elements of the SNB’s monetary policy strategy, the first part being its definition of pricing stability, the second part being the monetary policy decision that is taken based on the mid-term inflation forecast, and the third part being the setting of operational target ranges. The country’s monetary policy is conducted by the SNB by adjusting the Swiss Franc’s interest rate level within the money market. All assessments of the SNB’s monetary policy are published online, including those from previous years.

When Will the Next SNB Meeting be Held?

Knowing the dates on which the next SNB meeting will be held is important for all serious traders. It is possible to determine these key dates by looking at one of the online economic calendars which outline all of the scheduled SNB meetings that are upcoming in the year.

SNB Meeting Dates for 2024

Month Date
March 19th
June 18th
September 24th
December 17th

Why do Forex Traders Find the SNB Meeting Important?

Most investors will tell you that they enjoy success in the money markets because they use fundamental analysis including the economic calendar. An awareness of the key upcoming dates on which important pieces of economic news relating to the various currencies around the world is essential to the planning of effective trading strategies. One of the important dates to be aware of is the SNB meeting, as the Swiss National Bank’s monetary policy decisions and any adjustments they make to the Swiss Franc’s interest rate will naturally have a major impact on the world economy as a whole. Interactions between currency pairs will always vary depending on these monetary policy decisions, and therefore the four SNB meetings that are held throughout the year will affect the foreign currency market immensely. Around the time of the SNB meeting there will of course be speculation as to what the outcome for the nation’s monetary policy will be, and as a result there is considerably volatility in the Forex market at this time in the economic calendar. An awareness of the meeting dates allows traders to prepare their strategy in advance in order to either take advantage of volatility or avoid the riskiness of trading at this time.

Advice for Trading the SNB Meeting

Some investors choose to refrain from trading around the volatile time of the SNB meeting dates, but others are always looking for ways to capitalise on the rapid price movements and to hopefully gain a larger profit. Of course, there is always an increased risk of financial loss at this time, and therefore there are certain strategies that are more beneficial to enter into during this period in order to minimise the risk while maximising the chance of success. One of these strategies is the slingshot strategy, which aims to capitalise on the volatility that ensues during strong points. Here a trader should consider entering into NFP with their full position in order for the volatility that occurs around an announcement to push the trade more deeply into the profitable territory. A slingshot strategy aims to scale out of winning positions while the trade is moving in the investor’s favour, and there are several entry strategies that can be used to form an initial position. First, a trader must identify levels of resistance and support before they open a position. They can do this by examining hourly and 4-hourly charts to see trends that are existing on the lead-up to the announcement, and in that way, the trader can make sure that they end up on the profitable side of any move. The levels of resistance and support form the cut points at which the investor is able to close off their position should the price move too far against them. A stop for a long position can be set before the support level, and a stop for a short position can be set above the level of resistance, so that if either one of the levels is breached, any losses can be minimised.

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