Why Swiss Vollgeld Vote Has the Central Bank Nervous

In Harry Potter’s world, the goblins who run Gringotts Wizarding Bank store deposits deep in caves, where they sit untouched until they’re called for. That’s not the way banks work in Switzerland, or anywhere else. But a movement calling for sovereign money, or Vollgeld in German, will get its test there this Sunday in a national plebiscite. The idea is that by changing the way banks act, one could eliminate the kind of financial crisis that rocked the world economy in 2008.

A plebiscite on Vollgeld -- triggered after supporters collected 100,000 signatures -- takes place on June 10. Polling stations close at 12 noon, with projections of the outcome due about half an hour later and final results set for later on Sunday. There are no exit polls. The measure is likely to be rejected, a poll for broadcaster SRG found.