Insights 
VT 
As of the week ending 8 August 2025, total sight deposits at the Swiss National Bank (SNB) stood at CHF 465.9 billion. This is a decrease compared to the previous total of CHF 468.5 billion.
Domestic sight deposits experienced a more substantial drop, recorded at CHF 437.1 billion, down from CHF 493.5 billion earlier. The decrease follows a prior increase due to changes in the SNB treatment of sight deposits after the June meeting.
Snb’s Neutral Policy Stance
The small but steady decline in SNB sight deposits shows us that the central bank is remaining on the sidelines. This lack of intervention means they are not actively buying foreign currency to weaken the Swiss franc. We see this as a confirmation of the neutral policy stance adopted after the June meeting.
This hands-off approach is justified by the current economic data. Swiss inflation, as of July 2025, has held firm at 1.8%, which is comfortably inside the SNB’s 0-2% target range. This gives them little reason to ease policy, especially when the European Central Bank has already initiated rate cuts, putting natural upward pressure on the franc.
For derivative traders, this points towards continued low volatility in franc currency pairs. One-month implied volatility on EUR/CHF options has already fallen to 4.5%, a level approaching the multi-year lows we saw back in early 2024. This environment supports strategies that involve selling volatility, such as short strangles, to harvest premium from the market’s stability.
Strategic Trading Opportunities
The SNB’s inaction effectively creates a soft floor under the franc, particularly as EUR/CHF trades below the 0.9700 level. Traders might consider buying short-dated, at-the-money call options on the CHF against the EUR. This is a low-cost way to position for a stable or gradually strengthening franc, betting the SNB will tolerate this to keep imported inflation contained.
We are clearly in a different regime compared to the heavy interventions seen in the decade after 2015. After being one of the first major central banks to cut rates in March 2024, the SNB now appears content to wait. The focus for the coming weeks will likely remain on this passive reduction of liquidity rather than active currency manipulation.
