Actually that's not entirely true. In order to open a bank account in Germany you are required to be a resident of Germany. I tried recently and was told that without the residence papers I couldn't open an account. I tried three banks: Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank and Citibank.

The same is true in Switzerland. Although if you are a money-laundering Colombian Drug Baron and you want to deposit a million or so I hear they make exceptions to the rule.

Mike