What happens when the owner of a Swiss bank account dies?

This happens more often than you would imagine, as a lot of these accounts are kept secret from the rest of the family. The money remains in the bank until someone shows up in the Swiss bank with the right paperwork that proves that he is now the legitimate owner of that money. read more

The banks, which carry out regular surveys of such accounts, never publish any figures, and if funds are restored to beneficiaries no one wishes to go public. New legislation is under way, and a bill that has already passed the upper house of the parliament grants the owners of dormant assets a 50-year time limit to reclaim their deposit. read more