By law, every Swiss franc in circulation must be backed by 40% in gold reserves. Using the official price of Sfr. 4,596 per kilogram, also as mandated by the Swiss Constitution, Switzerland's gold reserves today of some Sfr. 12 billion are just more than enough to cover the statutory level at 43%. But applying a market price of Sfr. 16,500/kilo, gold reserves of Sfr. 43 bn still significantly exceed currency in circulation at about 150%.

In Switzerland's case, a current proposal in the Swiss Parliament which would reform the monetary system and eliminate the constitutional gold backing of the Swiss franc is not a new idea. Such a constitutional revision was first publicly put forward thirty years ago, and in 1978 was eventually vetoed by Parliament.

Although gold backed, there is no offer by the Swiss government to redeem their currency in gold.