Conclusion of Part I

Read the PDF edition (2 pages)

The relations between Geneva and Africa are long-standing, dense and ambivalent. They run through the missions and colonial trade, through the independences and International Geneva, through the French language, through commodity trading, through wealth management, through resource-backed loans, through the illicit assets cases and through the new bridges of the forums, investment, fintech and the diaspora. They make Geneva an African crossroads such as few European financial centres can claim to be.

These relations have two faces. Geneva has been for Africa a humanitarian partner, a platform, a centre of expertise, a buyer of its resources and a provider of finance. It has also been a refuge for the assets of its corrupt leaders, a party to inequitable contracts and the seat of traders convicted of corruption on the continent. The financial centre has made progress: the restitution framework, the criminal proceedings, the requirements of compliance and transparency have transformed practices. Switzerland has returned more than USD 2 billion in illicit assets. It has not completed its transformation, as the recent cases and the weakness of productive investment show.

The future of these relations depends on Geneva’s capacity to turn its assets — linguistic proximity, experience, institutions, the trading and finance cluster — into the instruments of an equitable partnership with a continent whose population, economy and strategic importance are growing. It also depends on the capacity of the African countries to improve their governance, to negotiate equitable terms and to control the use of their resources. Part J examines one of Geneva’s most singular assets in this relationship: the French language, as much an infrastructure of the financial centre as its payment systems.

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.

English

Contact

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.

Get in touch →

Conclusion of Part I

Setting up or expanding in Switzerland?