Commodity traders and their owners

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The ownership of trading houses shapes their behaviour. Houses owned by their executives, such as Vitol, Trafigura or Mercuria, align the interests of managers and owners, encourage entrepreneurial risk-taking and preserve confidentiality. They raise questions of succession, of liquidity for departing partners and of transparency towards banks and authorities.

Listed houses, such as Glencore, are subject to the disclosure and governance requirements of the stock markets, which increases their transparency but exposes them to pressure from shareholders and public opinion. The subsidiaries of integrated groups depend on the direction set by their parent company. Houses linked to producing states follow political as much as economic logic.

For banks, authorities and business partners, knowledge of the beneficial owners of a trading house is a fundamental compliance requirement. The cases involving shareholders subject to sanctions, particularly since 2022, have shown that an ownership structure can become, overnight, a source of illegality. The Act on the Transparency of Legal Entities, described in Part E, strengthens the obligations to identify the beneficial owners of Swiss companies, including commodity traders.

For general information only. This article does not constitute legal or tax advice, does not replace advice on an individual case and creates no lawyer-client relationship. It reflects the legal position as of September 2025.

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Dr Alexander Ressos, TEP

Rechtsanwalt/Attorney-at-Law

I am a Swiss attorney-at-law and also admitted as a solicitor in Hong Kong and in England & Wales, with almost 25 years of experience.

Together with my multilingual team, including Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Ukrainian and French native speakers, I advise companies and their owners from around the world on the full range of banking, corporate, commercial and tax law matters in Switzerland, including international tax planning, fiduciary services, and legal family office services including immigration & relocation or real estate investments. My practice has a particular focus on clients from growth and frontier markets in Greater China, Central Asia and the Caucasus, the rest of Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America, and I equally advise clients from Europe and North America. Through an affiliated Swiss trust company, we also take care of the incorporation and ongoing administration of their companies and other structures, including accounting, tax returns and corporate secretarial services, and I serve as a professional director where required. With the support of a network of first-class cooperation partners, I also implement solutions worldwide.

My approach is to act as a trusted advisor who works directly with decision-makers, on an equal footing: I start from what you want to achieve and shape every structure, contract and tax decision around your commercial goals and how it improves your after-tax return. As “lawyers who make it happen”, my team and I stay involved until your company is set up, your structure is in place and your transaction has closed, and we remain available for any follow-on work that may be required. You benefit from bespoke solutions and personal attention, and sound, friendly and practical advice. We are not the lowest-cost provider in the market, nor do we intend to be; our aim is to deliver well-founded, proper solutions and excellent value for money.

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