London, Houston, Shanghai and the others

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Geneva also competes with other centres. London remains the historic home of the futures markets for metals and North Sea oil, of marine insurance and of trading law. The major trading houses maintain substantial teams there, and a great many contracts are governed by English law.¹ Houston concentrates the activities linked to American energy production, which has become the largest in the world thanks to shale hydrocarbons.² Shanghai, Beijing and other Chinese cities host the traders who serve the world’s largest consumer of commodities, and the Chinese exchanges are gaining influence over price formation.³

Each centre occupies a position in the global geography of trading, and the large houses distribute their functions among them. Geneva stands out for its combination of financing, management, compliance and coverage of Europe, Africa and the Middle East, as well as for its intermediate time zone. This position is the product of a history and of a cluster, and it is secure only for as long as those advantages endure.

Notes

Wikipedia (en), art. “London Metal Exchange” (founded in 1877, acquired by Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing in 2012, futures and options on base metals, the Ring); art. “Intercontinental Exchange”: the International Petroleum Exchange of London acquired in June 2001 and renamed ICE Futures Europe; art. “Lloyd’s of London”: a market of 78 syndicates, gross premiums of GBP 52.1 billion in 2023; art. “London Maritime Arbitrators Association” (12 February 1960); art. “Baltic and International Maritime Council” (standard contracts). ↩
EIA, “U.S. crude oil production rose by 2% in 2024”, 16 April 2025: “U.S. crude oil production grew by 270,000 barrels per day (b/d) in 2024 to average 13.2 million b/d”, with the Permian Basin (West Texas and New Mexico) supplying 48% of national production and almost all of the growth; Wikipedia (en), art. “Vitol”: Houston among the group’s four principal locations, with Geneva, London and Singapore. ↩
Wikipedia (en), art. “China futures market”: Zhengzhou grain wholesale market created in October 1990, Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange (1993), Dalian Commodity Exchange (February 1993), Shanghai Futures Exchange (1999), China Financial Futures Exchange (Shanghai, September 2006); by the end of 2011, 29 products traded and an annual volume exceeding 300 trillion yuan. ↩

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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London, Houston, Shanghai and the others

Notes

Setting up or expanding in Switzerland?