Swiss Review 1/2019

Swiss Review / January 2019 / No.1 18 with an array of security features to prevent a second wave of Farine- tesque forgery from spreading throughout the canton. The farinet is a marginal cur- rency in comparison to the volume of money in Switzerland. Neverthe- less, it is typical for Switzerland, where many alternative means of payment are in circulation, some of which are extremely popular. For ex- ample, the Swiss Travel Fund Reka puts around 600 million of its own money into circulation every year by way of its Reka checks – and this trend is on the rise. The largest par- allel currency is theWirtschaftsring (WIR) with 45,000 companies in- volved and a turnover of 1.3 billion – but this trend is falling. The Farinets (Valais), Lémans (Geneva), Bonobos (Bern), NetzBons (Basel), EulachTaler (Winterthur) and Drachen (Fri- parallel and complementary curren- cies have appeared worldwide. The king of the 20 centime coin Smuggler and forger Joseph-Samuel Farinet (1845–1880) was a legend in the lower Valais region even during his lifetime. Farinet forged 20-centime coins on a large scale. In that rural environment, people put greater trust in these coins than in the paper money of the then crisis-ridden Cantonal Bank. Farinet was therefore able to pursue his “craft” unchecked for years. Owing to the fact that there were times that one third of all coins in circulation in Valais were counterfeit “farinets”, the Federal Council finally demanded the counterfeiter’s arrest. Hunted down by gendarmes, he died in unexplained circum- stances in Saillon in 1880. This added to the myth surrounding him. Farinet has long been the subject of artistic works. Charlez Ferdinand Ramuz set him a literary monument with “Farinet ou la fausse monnaie” (1932) and Max Haufler a cinematic one with “Farinet – Die sanfte und die wilde Freiheit” (1936). Author Willi Wottreng produced a fact-based work on Farinet in 2008, which was adapted for the stage by Markus Keller with “Farinet der Falschmünzer”. (MUL) bourg) are comparatively exotic and in some cases have also been shortlived. That explains why the na- tional monetary authorities are not exactly over the moon about all the alternative currencies. The principal supervisory authority, the Swiss Fi- nancial Market Supervisory Author- ity (FINMA), also monitors the alter- native money market. However, financial experts consider the risk posed by such micro-currencies – in terms of money laundering, for ex- ample – to be very low. Suppliers of alternative currencies are also largely exempt from the obligations imposed by the Anti-Money Laun- dering Act if they keep sales below the specified thresholds. Incidentally, the trend towards alternative currencies is not just lim- ited to Switzerland. Ever since the fi- nancial crisis, a growing number of “SWISS REVIEW” – THE APP IS JUST THREE CLICKS AWAY! SWISS REVIEW Get “Swiss Review” free as an app! It’s really easy: 1. Open the store on your smartphone or tablet. 2. Enter the search term “Swiss Review”. 3. Tap on install – all done! Julien runs: How a Genevan is aiming for the top of his sport in Kenya Ahead of the national elections: A look at the current political landscape in Switzerland Snow farming: How ski resorts are using yesterday’s snow in a bid to defy climate change Julienruns:HowaGenevan isaiming forthe topofhissport inKenya Aheadof thenationalelections:A lookat thecurrent political landscape inSwitzerland Snow farming:Howskiresortsareusingyesterday’ssnow inabid todefyclimatechange SWISS REVIEW The magazine for the Swiss Abroad January 2019 SWISS REVIEW Themagazine for theSwissAbroad January2019