Switzerland's central bank is the Swiss National Bank (SNB), the eurozone's is the European Central Bank (ECB), the United Kingdom's is the Bank of England, and the United States has the Federal Reserve. All operate independently from the government — a design feature meant to prevent politicians from financing deficits with the printing press. The primary mandate is usually price stability, defined as inflation around 2% per year.
Central banks influence the economy mainly through the policy interest rate. Raising the rate makes new loans more expensive, cools spending and investment, and dampens inflation. Lowering it does the opposite. In crises (2008, 2020) they also expand the money supply by buying government and corporate bonds — 'quantitative easing' — to keep credit flowing. The SNB famously deployed a EUR/CHF floor of 1.20 from 2011 to 2015 to prevent excessive currency appreciation.
For ordinary households the central bank shows up as mortgage rates rising when policy tightens, savings-account rates inching up six months later, and inflation eroding cash balances. Watching SNB and ECB policy meetings is essential context for any decision to lock in a fixed-rate mortgage or move savings into longer-duration assets.
In June 2024 the SNB cuts its policy rate from 1.50% to 1.25%, the second cut of the cycle. Within three months, Swiss SARON mortgage rates drop from about 2.0% to 1.75%. A homeowner with a CHF 600,000 SARON mortgage saves CHF 1,500 per year in interest.