Switzerland and Gold Transactions in the Second World War

Interim Report on Gold 24 Chapter 1
Minister of the Economy, 6 allowed imports only to the extent that they could be paid for by
exports. Imports were to be determined by economic necessity, and countries which would
accept sufficient quantities of German products were to be given preferential treatment. 7
The Nazis’ efforts at autarchy could not solve Germany’s foreign currency shortage. The goal
of significantly increasing the German economy’s self-sufficiency was not attained. 8 In
addition, Hitler, who had reserved the power since October 1933 to appoint members of the
Governing Board of the Reichsbank, gave priority to war preparations after 1936. Schacht was
thus replaced by Walther Funk 9 as Minister of the Economy at the end of 1937 and as
President of the Reichsbank at the beginning of 1939. Funk, who from 1933 to 1937 served in
the Reich government as press secretary and as state secretary in Joseph Goebbels’ Ministry
for Propaganda, acted as Hitler’s economic advisor and was a confidant of Hermann Göring.
In 1938 he was appointed Minister of the Economy and Plenipotentiary for the wartime
economy and one year later President of the Reichsbank and Plenipotentiary of Economic
Affairs. Schacht, to no avail, resisted the project of financing the wartime economy with
unsecured public debt.
With the attack on Poland, the need intensified for armaments and raw materials which could
only be acquired abroad against payment in foreign currencies or gold. The latter included
petroleum, iron ore, manganese, and tungsten. The main suppliers were Portugal, Romania,
Sweden, Spain, and Turkey. 10 The Reich’s requirement for freely-convertible foreign currency
increased, as a result of payments for international services and capital transactions which
continued after 1933, and which were in part maintained until 1945. These included the
servicing of foreign currency bond issues (primarily the Dawes and Young bonds, and the
Austrian League of Nations bonds which were taken over in 1938), the transfer of capital
yields such as interest and dividends to foreign investors, as well as license royalties, premiums
and professional fees, and pensions for German citizens residing abroad. In this connection, a
leading spokesman of Swiss industry referred to the estimated sum of SFr. 212.2 million for
annual payments by the German Reich to his country alone. 11
Germany had five principle ways of acquiring foreign exchange:
1. Securing universally convertible foreign currency through sales of gold to foreign central
banks and commercial banks.
2. Exports and services for customers abroad.
3. The sale of looted goods such as works of art, precious stones or negotiable securities.
6
7
8
9
10
11
For biographical information, see Appendix 1.
Boelcke 1994, p. 23.
Boelcke 1994, p. 158; Volkmann 1989, pp. 430 ff.
For additional biographical information see Appendix 1.
Boelcke 1994, pp. 131, 159, 174.
According to information from Heinrich Homberger, Director of the Handels- und Industrieverein [Swiss Association
for Trade and Industry]. See SDD, vol. 15, p. 72, note 8. For biographical information on Homberger, see Appendix 1.