The Swiss franc soared 29 percent against the euro Thursday after Switzerland's central bank said it was ending a three-year bid to artificially hold down the currency's value.
Minutes after the bank said it was removing its exchange rate floor of 1.20 to the euro, the franc strengthened sharply, surging beyond parity to Europe's common currency.
The franc, which bought a euro for 1.2010 late on Wednesday, was trading at just 0.8517 on Thursday.