SNB Sight Deposits (CHF): Domestic 435.25bln (prev. 442.66bln), Total 465.2bln (prev. 469.3bln)

SNB Sight Deposits (CHF): Domestic 435.25bln (prev. 442.66bln), Total 465.2bln (prev. 469.3bln)

Weekly sight deposits are read as the closest real-time proxy for SNB FX intervention, since purchases of foreign currency are settled in francs and show up as deposits the central bank credits to banks. A fall in the total, as here, is consistent with the absence of fresh franc-selling intervention and, at the margin, can also reflect franc-buying or the roll-off of past operations; episodes of this kind have tended to be parsed for whether the decline is steady runoff or a change in stance. The domestic-versus-total split matters: the domestic line is the cleaner intervention gauge, while the gap between total and domestic captures non-resident balances that move for their own reasons. The SNB has a long track record of using the balance sheet rather than the policy rate as its primary tool when the franc runs too strong, so persistent weekly declines have historically been read as tolerance of a firmer currency, and persistent builds the reverse. The follow-ons are the next weekly prints to establish a trend, since a single week's move is within normal noise, alongside any SNB commentary on intervention willingness ahead of scheduled policy decisions.