Insurance

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Insurance covers the risks that the trader can neither avoid nor hedge on the markets: loss of or damage to cargoes, civil liability, political risks — expropriation, war, transfer restrictions — and payment default by buyers. Credit insurance in particular allows traders and their banks to transfer part of the counterparty risk to specialist insurers, which facilitates the financing of transactions with buyers in high-risk countries.¹

Geneva houses insurance brokers specialising in trading and transport, as well as offices of insurers and reinsurers. Switzerland, one of the world’s principal reinsurance centres, gives the cluster a particular depth in this field.² Insurers also take part in the debates on compliance, since they require their insureds to operate counterparty verification procedures and to comply with sanctions.

Notes

Credendo, Annual Report 2020, BCGE testimonial: cover of the credit and political risks of the trade finance portfolio by Credendo – Single Risk since 2015, the bank retaining more than half of the risk (“We don’t consider that, thanks to the insurance product, you can make a bad risk good”); SECO, “Assurance suisse contre les risques à l’exportation”: SERV, a public-law institution established under the Federal Act on Swiss Export Risk Insurance (SERVG; SR 946.10), insuring exporters’ political and del credere risks; Wikipedia (en), article “Lloyd’s of London”: market of 78 syndicates (2023), gross premiums of GBP 52.1 billion in 2023. ↩
Wikipedia (en), article “Swiss Re”: the leading Swiss reinsurance company, founded in Zurich in 1863 after the fire of Glarus, “one of the world’s largest reinsurers, as measured by gross premiums written”, around 80 offices in 29 countries, 14,893 employees at the end of 2025, listed on the SIX (SMI). ↩

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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Insurance

Notes

Setting up or expanding in Switzerland?