Geneva’s French Ties Fray as Banks Warn Offshore Clients

For more than a century, the Swiss city of Geneva has provided wealthy French families with a convenient and safe place to stash their money.

Switzerland’s political neutrality and stability and its tradition of bank secrecy kept their fortunes beyond the reach of warring powers and the most determined tax collectors, even though Geneva is less than three miles from the French border. In turn, French funds have helped build the city into a showpiece for Gallic culture -- and the world’s largest concentration of wealth managers.