The Swiss Money Holding was a

professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

tag team Tag team wrestling is a type of professional wrestling in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. Tag teams may be made up of wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of establish ...

originally composed of Ares and

Claudio Castagnoli Claudio Castagnoli ( ; born 27 December 1980) is a Swiss professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and is a member of the Blackpool Combat Club stable. Castagnoli also performs for AEW's sister promotion, Ring of Ho ...

, and later joined by Marc Roudin in late 2004. Their in-ring personas parodied Swiss bankers from the

United Bank of Switzerland UBS Group AG is a multinational Investment banking, investment bank and financial services company founded and based in Switzerland. Co-headquartered in the cities of Zürich and Basel, it maintains a presence in all major financial centres ...

. The team first worked for

Westside Xtreme Wrestling Westside Xtreme Wrestling, commonly shortened to wXw, is a German professional wrestling promotion based in Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia. wXw has been one of the leading professional wrestling promotions in Germany, and most of its eve ...

Essen, Germany Essen (; Latin: ''Assindia'') is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and Dor ...

, for much of their early career and later competed in promotions throughout the continent. Within a few years, $MH were considered one of the top tag teams in Europe having won titles in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and Switzerland. They are regarded as one of the most dominant tag teams in the history of International Pro Wrestling: United Kingdom having held the promotion's tag team titles for a record 12 months, and have been acknowledged by Britain's

UK Pitbulls The UK Pitbulls are a professional wrestling tag team that consists of brothers Bulk (Mike Waters, born 1978) and Big Dave (Dave Waters, born 1971). They previously held a number of titles in the United Kingdom, United States, as well as 11 coun ...

and visiting American wrestlers such as Chris Hero and Colt Cabana. At the invitation of Hero, Ares and Castagnoli eventually traveled to the United States where they wrestled in several major

independent promotion In professional wrestling, the independent circuit or indie circuit is the collective name of independent professional wrestling promotions which are smaller than major televised promotions. It is roughly analogous to a minor league for pro wres ...

s, most notably,

IWA Mid-South Independent Wrestling Association (IWA) Mid-South (also known as IWA Mid-South, IWA-MS, and IWA Mid South Wrestling) is an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in New Albany, Indiana. It was formed by Ian Rotten in 1996 ...

and Chikara. After their return to Europe in 2004, Castagnoli went back to the US wrestle full-time for Chikara while Ares remained to Europe to carry on with Marc Roudin. Though Castagnoli would continue to team with Ares from time to time, they would not reunite until Ares' surprise appearance at Chikara's “Three-Fisted Tales” show in 2009. Becoming part of the BDK, they would go on to win the 2010 King of Trios with Tursas.

Career

Westside Xtreme wrestling (2001–2003)

Swiss Money Holding was formed in 2001 when wXw promoter Hate and wrestler SigMasta Rappo, their trainer, decided to pair the two Swiss wrestlers as a tag team. Their first match together was against Euro Threat (HATE and SigMasta Rappo) at the "Taste It Twice" supercard on May 13, 2001. Both had only very recently joined the German promotion, however their similar personalities and ring style proved immediately popular with fans. Wrestling as "heels", their in-ring personae were parodies of Swiss bankers. From 2001 to 2003, Don Heavy, a trainee of Ares' and Castagnoli's, would also occasionally team with the duo as the third member of the team. The team would eventually win the

wXw Tag Team Championship This is a chronological list of WXW Tag Team Champions. The WXW Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling tag team title created in 1996 as part of for Top Rope Productions (later renamed World Xtreme Wrestling World Xtreme Wrestling ...

a record 3-times by the end of 2002, and Castagnoli won the wXw Heavyweight title from

Jimmy Jacobs Christopher Scoville (born February 17, 1984) is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Jimmy Jacobs. He was recently signed to Impact Wrestling as a member of the creative team and producer. He is best known for his 1 ...

at the end of 2003. That same year, they also won a "tag team turmoil match" against Fighting Spirit, Louis Van Eden and Luchadore Sitoci, Z Shooting Star Sick and Steve Douglas, Darksoul and Alex Pain and Murat Bosporus and Thomas Blase to become the first tag team champions for German Stampede Wrestling. They soon began wrestling in other German promotions, such as Athletik Club Wrestling, European Wrestling Fighters, and the New Alliance of Wrestling Athletes, as well as outside the country. Among these were

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

's Riotgas Wrestling Alliance and Wrestling Warriors Austria, and Freestyle Championship Wrestling in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. Ares and Castagnoli faced each other in singles matches during this time and, on April 18, 2003, they participated in a 4 Way Dance against American wrestlers Chris Hero and

Mike Quackenbush Michael Spillane (born March 18, 1976), is an American podcaster, author, professional wrestling trainer, professional wrestling promoter, and retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Mike Quackenbush. He has hosted several ...

at the 2-day wXw supercard "Gott Eggs?". They also faced Hero and Quackenbush in a tag team match, and Hero in singles matches throughout the year.

Touring the United States (2003)

Hero was so impressed by their performance, he invited them to perform in the United States. They soon embarked on a summer tour of the US competing in a number of

s on the

East Coast East Coast may refer to: Entertainment * East Coast hip hop, a subgenre of hip hop * East Coast (ASAP Ferg song), "East Coast" (ASAP Ferg song), 2017 * East Coast (Saves the Day song), "East Coast" (Saves the Day song), 2004 * East Coast FM, a ra ...

and

Midwestern United States The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...

. On July 4, 2003, Ares and Castagnoli made their first US appearance for

IWA Mid South Independent Wrestling Association (IWA) Mid-South (also known as IWA Mid-South, IWA-MS, and IWA Mid South Wrestling) is an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in New Albany, Indiana. It was formed by Ian Rotten in 1996 ...

defeating Chris Hero and Mark Wolf at the "We Are Family" supercard in Clarksville, Indiana. The following night in Allentown, Pennsylvania, Swiss Money Holding made their Chikara debuts at the 2003 Tag World Grand Prix. They defeated Senior Assault Team (Melvin Snodgrass and Lester Crabtree) in the first round but were eliminated after drawing with the SuperFriends (Chris Hero and Mike Quackenbush). Following a second appearance at the IWA Arena, Ares and Castagnoli took part in a third supercard, "X-treme Combat III", held by Xtreme Intense Championship Wrestling in

Warren, Michigan Warren is a city in Macomb County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The 2020 Census places the city's population at 139,387, making Warren the largest city in Macomb County, the third largest city in Michigan, and Metro Detroit's largest suburb. T ...

, on July 13, 2003. They wrestled in the main event, a 3 Way Dance, against Jaimy CoxXx and Alex Shelley and XICW Tag Team Champions Gavin Starr and

Introduction of Marc Roudin (2003–2009)

After their return to Europe, Castagnoli wanted to return to the United States so he could wrestle full-time for Chikara. As a result, Marc Roudin was brought in to replace him. Castagnoli would return to team with Ares on occasion, and while the trio were billed as a 3-man team, all three members were rarely seen together. Castagnoli's growing involvement with Chikara, and later Ring of Honor, saw Roudin making up the bulk of appearances with Ares for the next few years. In early 2004, Swiss Money Holding began wrestling in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

for Force Francophone de Catch and the International Catch Wrestling Alliance. On June 19, Castagnoli regained the wXw Heavyweight Championship from

Ian Rotten John Benson Williams (born June 1, 1970) is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Ian Rotten. He has wrestled in the Global Wrestling Federation (GWF), Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), the United States Wrestling As ...

in Wein, Austria. A month later, Castagnoli participated in the 2004 Ted Petty Invitational for IWA Mid-South while Ares faced Colt Cabana in his Germany debut. Ares would also win the wXw Heavyweight title the following year and, together with Roudin, also regained the GSW Tag Team Championship from Eric Schwarz and Michael Kovac on April 9, 2005. On September 23, 2005, Swiss Money Holding was scheduled to appear for Italian Championship Wrestling's "Pandemonium IV" in Sondrio, Italy to face its tag team champions the Party Boyz (Ace and Andres Diamond). When Ares showed up without a partner, there was some confusion as to which team member would be joining him. While conducting an in-ring interview with the Party Boyz, General Manager Amarillo attacked both men revealing himself to be Ares' secret partner. In their title match later that night, Amarillo was pinned by Andres Diamond. On December 10, 2006, Ares and Castagnoli made their debut in International Pro Wrestling: United Kingdom where they unexpectedly defeated IPW: UK Tag Team Champions Dragon Phoenix and Bubblegum, the latter substituting for injured co-champion

Spud The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae. Wild potato species can be found from the southern United S ...

, in Colchester, England. Taking the titles back to Germany, Swiss Money Holding legitimized their claim on the belts by beating former champions The Dragon Hearts (Phoenix & Spud) in a rematch at the Orpington Halls upon their return to IPW: UK. Ares and Marc Roudin successfully defended the titles in Orpington against Team NOAH ( Doug Williams and

Go Shiozaki is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently signed to the Pro Wrestling Noah promotion where he is the former GHC Heavyweight Champion in a record breaking fifth reign. He made his debut for the promotion in July 2004 and remained with it unti ...

) on April 22, and The Dragon Hearts at the "A Taste Of IPW" show a week later. Ares and Castagnoli also entered the 2007 King Of Europe Cup with

Trent Acid Michael Verdi (November 12, 1980 – June 18, 2010), best known by his ring name Trent Acid, was an American professional wrestler. He worked as a tag team wrestler for most of his career, primarily as part of The Backseat Boyz with Johnny Kashm ...

at the Olympia in

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

but were eliminated by the team of

Atsushi Aoki was a Japanese professional wrestler who worked for All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) as a wrestler, president of talent relations and head trainer at their dojo. Aoki began his career in Pro Wrestling Noah in 2005, where he went on to become a two ...

El Generico Rami Sebei ( ar, رامي سبعي; born July 12, 1984) is a Canadian professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Sami Zayn, and is a member of The Bloodline. Prior to joi ...

and Martin Stone. In the first half of 2007, Ares and Roudin won both the ROE Switzerland and Fighting Spirit Federation tag team titles. Over the summer, they then feuded with

The Kartel The Kartel was a professional wrestling tag team made up of Terry Frazier and Sha Samuels. They are best known their work on the independent circuit mainly within the United Kingdom. Professional wrestling career Frazier, and Samuels, The Ea ...

(Sha Samuels and Terry Frazier) and eventually lost the IPW: UK titles to them in August. Ares also made a US appearance on November 7, teaming with

Allison Danger Cathy Allison Corino (born March 31, 1977) is a Canadian retired professional wrestler and professional wrestling manager, better known by her ring name, Allison Danger. Professional wrestling career Early career Corino's older brother Steve ...

in a mixed tag team match against Mr. Wrestling 3 and Shark Girl at the Carolina Wrestling Association's "All Or Nothing II" in

York, South Carolina York is a city in and county seat of York County, South Carolina, United States. The population was approximately 6,985 at the 2000 census and up to 7,736 at the 2010 census. York is located approximately southwest of Charlotte, North Caroli ...

. Becky Bayless was the special guest referee. A month later, Swiss Money Holdind defeated SigMasta Rappo and British Stallion at "Winter Heat" for Swiss Championship Wrestling on December 15, 2007. On January 19, 2008, Ares and Castagnoli faced fellow stablemate Marc Roudin and Chris Hero for the wXw Tag Team titles. Roudin and Hero had won them from AbLas (Absolute Andy and Steve Douglas) in

Oberhausen, Germany Oberhausen (, ) is a city on the river Emscher in the Ruhr Area, Germany, located between Duisburg and Essen ( ). The city hosts the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen and its Gasometer Oberhausen is an anchor point of the European Rout ...

, the previous November. At "IPW: UK vs. The World", Swiss Money Holding once more attempted to win back the IPW: UK titles from The Kartel at Broxbourne Civic Hall on March 15 but failed to defeat them. This was their last appearance in the promotion. At the end of the year, Castagnoli and Roudin entered the 2008 Tag World Grand Prix in

, on November 4, 2008. They were eliminated in the first round by The UnStable (

Vin Gerard Vince Gerard Durling (born February 4, 1986) is an American former professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenure in Chikara, where he was a one time Young Lions Cup Champion. Currently he is the owner/operator of Indiewrestling.tv. Pro ...

and STIGMA) when Gerard pinned Roudin. By early 2009, Ares was also wrestling in the United States full-time following his marriage to

. On January 29, he and Castagnoli took on the Carolina Wrestling Federation's

Team Maction A team is a group of individuals (human or non-human) working together to achieve their goal. As defined by Professor Leigh Thompson of the Kellogg School of Management, " team is a group of people who are interdependent with respect to info ...

( "Krazy K" Kirby Mack and T.J. Mack) at the Carolina Sports Arena in Burlington, North Carolina. Kirby Mack sprained his right elbow during this match.

Reunion in Chikara (2009–2011)

Castagnol & Ares - Campeonatos de Parejas

After six years, the official SMH reunion between Ares and Castagnoli took place at the end of Chikara's “Three-Fisted Tales” show in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, on November 22, 2009. When Ares revealed himself as the masked man who had been stalking

UltraMantis Black UltraMantis Black (born July 17, 1975) is a professional wrestler and musician, who performs primarily in the Chikara professional wrestling promotion. He is a former one-time Chikara Grand Champion and winner of the 2012 King of Trios tourname ...

, Castagnoli turned '' heel'' and attacked ally Mike Quackenbush. After beating the entire ''

face The face is the front of an animal's head that features the eyes, nose and mouth, and through which animals express many of their emotions. The face is crucial for human identity, and damage such as scarring or developmental deformities may aff ...

'' roster Castagnoli aligned himself with Ares, Tursas, Pinkie Sanchez,

Tim Donst Michael Hopes (born October 17, 1987) is an American professional wrestler, better known under the ring name Tim Donst. He is performing primarily in Absolute Intense Wrestling (AIW), Chikara and Dragon Gate USA. He is known for his amateur ...

Sara Del Rey Sara Ann Amato (born November 13, 1980) is an American professional wrestling trainer and retired professional wrestler, best known by her ring name Sara Del Rey. She was a mainstay for Chikara and Shimmer, but also appeared for many other ind ...

and

Daizee Haze Emily Sharp (born May 11, 1983) is an American former professional wrestler known under the ring name Daizee Haze. She is best known for her time on the independent circuit, where she performed for numerous promotions such as Chikara, Ring of Hon ...

to form the

Bruderschaft des Kreuzes Bruderschaft des Kreuzes (German for "Brotherhood of the Cross", commonly abbreviated to BDK) was a professional wrestling stable in the Chikara promotion. History Chikara Background (2007–2009) On May 27, 2007, at ''Aniversario?'' Mike Qua ...

. After picking up the three points required to challenge for the Campeonatos de Parejas in just one weekend, Castagnoli and Ares defeated The Colony (Fire Ant and Soldier Ant) on March 20, 2010, to win the titles, making Castagnoli the first two-time Campeon de Parejas in Chikara history. In April Castagnoli, Ares and Tursas defeated the teams of

The Osirian Portal The Osirian Portal is a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Amasis and Ophidian. The team mainly competed in Chikara, where they held the Campeonatos de Parejas, and Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW). They have also made appearances in Rin ...

(Amasis and Ophidian) and Sara Del Rey, Team Perros del Mal ( El Alebrije, Cuije and El Orientál), Team Big Japan Wrestling (

Daisuke Sekimoto (born February 9, 1981) is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently signed to Big Japan Pro Wrestling (BJW) in the Strong BJ division. He is also known for his appearances in Pro Wrestling Zero1-Max. He is a three-time BJW World Strong Heavyw ...

, Kankuro Hoshino and

Yuji Okabayashi is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently signed to Big Japan Pro Wrestling (BJW) in the Strong BJ division. He has been working in BJW since his debut in June 2008. He is best known as part of a tag team with Daisuke Sekimoto, with whom ...

) and The Colony (Fire Ant, Soldier Ant and Green Ant) over a three-day tournament to win the 2010 King of Trios. The team was broken up again in September 2011, when Castagnoli signed with

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vari ...

Championships and accomplishments

* Chikara **

Chikara Campeonatos de Parejas The Chikara Campeonatos de Parejas (''Chikara Tag Team championship'') was a professional wrestling tag team championship contested for in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania based promotion Chikara. History The Campeonatos de Parejas was introduced ...

( 1 times) – Ares and Castagnoli **

King of Trios King of Trios was a three-night tournament promoted by the Chikara professional wrestling promotion. The tournament was a different take on the Tag World Grand Prix event that the promotion was known for annually promoting; in King of Trios, ins ...

( 2010) – Ares, Castagnoli and Tursas *German Stampede Wrestling **GSW World Heavyweight Championship - Ares **GSW Tag Team Championship (2 times) – Ares, Castagnoli, Heavy and Roudin (1), Ares and Roudin (1) * International Pro Wrestling: United Kingdom ** IPW:UK Tag Team Championship (1 time) – Ares, Castagnoli and Roudin *

Pro Wrestling Illustrated ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publi ...

**PWI ranked Ares # 122 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the PWI 500 in 2007 **PWI ranked Claudio Castagnoli # 67 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the PWI 500 in 2007 *

Revolution Pro Wrestling Revolution Pro Wrestling (RevPro/RPW) is a British professional wrestling promotion founded on 26 August 2012 by Andy Quildan after separating from International Pro Wrestling: United Kingdom. Revolution Pro Wrestling currently has partnershi ...

Undisputed British Tag Team Championship The Undisputed British Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling championship owned by the Revolution Pro Wrestling (RevPro/RPW) promotion. The title was created and debuted on 17 July 2005. The inaugural champions were AK-47 (Ashe and K ...

(1 time) *Swiss Wrestling Federation **SWF Heavyweight Championship (1 time) - Ares **SWF Powerhouse Championship (3 times) - Castagnoli (2) and Heavy (1) **SWF Light Heavyweight Champion (1 time) - Roudin **SWF Tag Team Championship (1 time) – Ares and Castagnoli *

wXw World Heavyweight Championship The wXw Unified World Wrestling Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship, contested in the German professional wrestling promotion, Westside Xtreme Wrestling. The championship was established in 2001 as the wXw Wor ...

(4 times) – Ares (2) and Castagnoli (2) **

(3 times) – Ares and Castagnoli

References

External links

SwissMoneyHolding.ch (Official Website)Swiss Money Holding entry at cagematch.de
{{WXW World Tag Team Championship Independent promotions teams and stables