Everything You Need to Know About the Swiss Gold Referendum

Why is the "Save Our Swiss Gold" national referendum a big deal for the global gold market?

This measure, if it passes, calls for the repatriation of all Swiss gold reserves, now held in Canada and the United Kingdom. It also mandates that the Swiss National Bank increase gold reserves to 20% of all reserves, up from the less than 8% held now. It also requires the central bank to buy more gold any time it prints more money, in order to keep the 20% gold ratio. Most controversially, it forbids the sale or lease of any gold held in the national reserves, even if the money supply shrinks.

This will in effect put Switzerland back on a fractional gold standard. The Swiss were the last nation to give up on the gold standard, when it stopped backing the Franc with gold at a 40% ratio in 2000.