Swiss need better capital, liquidity buffers-SNB

ZURICH Aug 27 (Reuters) - Switzerland must improve the resilience of its financial system to prepare for future crises, Swiss National Bank Vice-Chairman Philipp Hildebrand said, repeating his call for stricter capital rules for the big banks. In the text of a speech to be delivered at an award ceremony in Zurich on Wednesday, Hildebrand made no mention of Swiss monetary policy, the outlook for inflation or the economy.

"In the light of the events of the past years, it's indisputable that we have to improve the buffers of our financial system in the areas of capital and liquidity," Hildebrand said.

Banks needed to be more transparent about their risk positions and should focus their risk management more on external shocks. Switzerland's largest bank UBS(UBSN.VX) is among the main victims of the credit crisis with some $42 billion in writedowns.

Hildebrand, who is in charge of financial stability at the SNB, repeated that the central bank supported the Swiss banking commission's plans to implement stricter capital requirements for the banks.

For the full text of the speech in German click on www.snb.ch

For earlier stories on the SNB's view on banking regulation click on [ID:nL18568046] or [ID:nL18437271]

(Reporting by Sven Egenter; editing by Stephen Nisbet)