The complete text of Dr Alexander Ressos’s study of Zug, from rural commonwealth to tax location, headquarters economy, commodity trading, Crypto Valley and the outlook to 2035, published here chapter by chapter.
The complete text of Dr Alexander Ressos’s study of Zug, from rural commonwealth to tax location, headquarters economy, commodity trading, Crypto Valley and the outlook to 2035, published here chapter by chapter.
Each section of the book appears here as a separate article, with its footnotes, in the order of the book. The articles can be read on their own; the part pages collect the chapters of each part.
Preface
This book, the companion to a study of Geneva as an international financial centre, asks the same question of a very different place. Read more Zug · IntroductionA small canton with a global footprint
The canton of Zug covers 238.7 square kilometres, which makes it one of the smallest cantons of the Swiss Confederation by area. Read more Zug · IntroductionFour pillars and a language
The structure of this book mirrors the structure of the Geneva volume, because the comparison is intended. Read more Zug · IntroductionThree perspectives
The book combines three perspectives. The historian's perspective comes first, because Zug's present is less improvised than it appears. Read more Zug · IntroductionThe plan of the book
The book follows an order that is both chronological and thematic. Part A traces the origins of the canton from the medieval town and its rural communes to the first industrial age. Read more Zug · OriginsTown, Amt and Commons: Zug before 1798 — conclusion
On the eve of the revolution of 1798, the canton of Zug was a small, Catholic, agrarian polity of about 12,700 inhabitants. Read more Zug · OriginsA small country between two lakes
The territory of the canton of Zug is small, compact and varied. It covers 238.8 square kilometres, of which, according to the land-use statistics of 2006, some 107 square kilometres were… Read more Zug · OriginsFrom Kyburg to Habsburg
The name of Zug appears for the first time in 1092, in the form "Ziuge". The town was founded around or after 1200. Read more Zug · OriginsMorgarten and the entry into the Confederation
On 15 November 1315, on the shore of Lake Ägeri near Sattel, the forces of Schwyz, Uri and Unterwalden ambushed an Austrian army under Duke Leopold I of Habsburg. Read more Zug · OriginsStadt und Amt: a federal constitution in miniature
The constitution of the old canton of Zug was itself a federation. The canton consisted of the town of Zug and the "Äusseres Amt", the outer district, which comprised the three rural communes of… Read more Zug · OriginsThe commons and the corporations
Beside the political institutions of town and communes stood the institutions of communal property. Read more Zug · OriginsThe lake takes the town: 4 March 1435
On 4 March 1435, the lowest of the three streets of the old town of Zug, the one nearest the lake, slid into Lake Zug. Two rows of houses disappeared into the water. Read more Zug · OriginsWalls, markets and guilds
Between 1478 and 1528 the town built a new ring of walls, in several stages, with six round towers and three gate towers. The walls enlarged the town considerably and enclosed space for later growth. Read more Zug · OriginsThe old faith and the confessional border
When the Reformation reached Switzerland in the 1520s, Zug had to choose. Its powerful neighbour Zurich, under the leadership of Huldrych Zwingli, adopted the new faith. Read more Zug · OriginsWar as an export: mercenary service and foreign pensions
For three centuries, the most important export of the canton of Zug was military service. Read more Zug · OriginsHarten and Linden: a quarrel over rents
The tensions built into the system of pensions erupted in the eighteenth century in two conflicts known as the Harten- und Lindenhandel, the quarrel between the "hard" and the "soft" parties. Read more Zug · OriginsCattle, cheese and cherries
Beside mercenary service, the economy of the old canton rested on agriculture. The upland communes of Menzingen and Ägeri specialised in cattle and dairy farming. Read more Zug · OriginsRevolution, Sonderbund and the Federal State (1798–1894) — conclusion
Between 1798 and 1894, the canton of Zug passed from the old order of town and Amt, subject territories and foreign pensions, to a modern representative democracy within a federal state. Read more Zug · OriginsThe end of the old order
The old canton of Zug ended in the spring of 1798. On 11 February 1798, under the pressure of the revolutionary movement that was sweeping through the Confederation and of the French armies advancing… Read more Zug · OriginsThe Helvetic experiment in taxation
The Helvetic Republic attempted to create a modern state. It abolished the subject territories and the feudal relations. Read more Zug · OriginsMediation and restoration
The Helvetic Republic collapsed under its internal divisions between unitarists and federalists and under the weight of the war. Read more Zug · OriginsRegeneration and the confessional struggle
The 1830s brought the movement known as the Regeneration, in which liberal forces in many cantons replaced the Restoration constitutions with liberal and democratic ones. Read more Zug · OriginsThe Sonderbund
On 11 December 1845, seven Catholic-conservative cantons, Lucerne, Uri, Schwyz, Unterwalden, Zug, Fribourg and Valais, concluded in Lucerne a protective alliance, the Sonderbund, with a war council… Read more Zug · OriginsThe cantonal constitution of 1848
The defeat in the Sonderbund war brought a liberal revolution to the canton. On 16 January 1848, the canton adopted a new constitution, which abolished the Landsgemeinde and the division of the… Read more Zug · OriginsThe federal state of 1848 and the division of taxing powers
The Federal Constitution of 12 September 1848 transformed the Confederation from an alliance of sovereign states into a federal state. Read more Zug · OriginsThe mobile taxpayer: a practitioner's note
The constitutional architecture of 1848 still governs the questions that practitioners face when a client considers a move to Zug. Read more Zug · OriginsDirect democracy and the constitution of 1894
The decades after 1848 saw the progressive democratisation of the cantonal constitution. Read more Zug · OriginsThe infrastructure of a modern canton
The decades after 1848 transformed the physical infrastructure of the canton. In 1852, a steamship service began to operate on Lake Zug. In 1857, the first hospital of the canton opened in the town. Read more Zug · OriginsThe First Industrial Age (1834–1939) — conclusion
Part A has followed the canton of Zug from its medieval origins to the eve of the Second World War. The picture that emerges differs sharply from that of Geneva. Read more Zug · OriginsWater, cotton and the Henggeler family
Industry came to Zug by way of its water. The river Lorze, falling steeply from Lake Ägeri through its gorge towards Baar, offered a source of power that the early spinning mills needed. Read more Zug · OriginsThe Spinnerei an der Lorze
The largest industrial enterprise of the nineteenth-century canton was the cotton spinning mill on the Lorze at Baar. Read more Zug · OriginsPaper from Cham
The second pillar of the early industrial economy was paper. In 1825, Johann Jakob Vogel-Nötzli bought the property of a hammer forge in Cham. Read more Zug · OriginsAn American in Cham: the Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk Company
The first enterprise in Zug with a genuinely global market was founded by foreigners. Read more Zug · OriginsFailure and credit: the Email- und Metallwarenfabrik and the cantonal bank
The industrial history of Zug also has its failures. In 1881, an enamel and metal goods factory, the Email- und Metallwarenfabrik, was founded in the town of Zug. Read more Zug · OriginsThe Vorstadt catastrophe of 1887
On 5 July 1887, the lake claimed part of the town of Zug for the second time. Work on a new quay along the lakeshore, undertaken by a railway company, had destabilised the ground of the Vorstadt… Read more Zug · OriginsThe second industrialisation: electricity, meters and light
In the last two decades of the nineteenth century and the first decade of the twentieth, the town of Zug experienced a second wave of industrialisation. Read more Zug · OriginsWomen, foreigners and the factory law
The industrial workforce of Zug was, to a large extent, female and foreign. In the spinning mills, women formed the majority of the workers: across the Swiss cotton industry in 1888, women made up 46… Read more Zug · OriginsGrowth and prosperity before 1914
The industrialisation of the canton translated into population growth and rising incomes. The town of Zug grew from 5,120 inhabitants in 1888 to 6,508 in 1900 and 8,096 in 1910. Read more Zug · OriginsCrisis and the turn: 1918 to 1939
The interwar years brought crisis to the industrial economy of Zug. The Social Democrats won their first seat in the town council in 1918, the year of the national general strike. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnA Swiss competition before Zug
Zug did not invent the tax privilege for holding companies. When the canton first discussed such a privilege in 1921, it could point to precedents in Schaffhausen, Zurich, Solothurn and Glarus. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe revision of 1921 and the vote of January 1922
In Zug, the revision of the tax law in 1921 included, for the first time, a provision for the privileged taxation of holding companies. The revision was put to the people. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe lobbyist and the finance director
The failure of the 1924 law did not go unnoticed. Two men played a central role in the efforts to improve it. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe law of 15 July 1930
The decisive step came in 1930. On 15 July 1930, the canton enacted a law on the special taxation of legal entities, the "Gesetz betreffend die Sonderbesteuerung juristischer Personen". Read more Zug · The Tax TurnA moral economy of the small state
The holding privilege was controversial from the start. The arguments made against it in the 1920s anticipate almost all the criticisms that would be made of Zug's tax policy in the following… Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe limits of the privilege: the 1930s and the war
The law of 1930 did not transform the canton overnight. Because the world economic crisis and the Second World War limited the flow of international capital, the number of holding companies in Zug… Read more Zug · The Tax TurnStability as a promise: reliance, grandfathering and the rule of law
The interwar experience taught the canton a lesson that it would apply for the rest of the century: a tax privilege attracts companies only if they can rely on it. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe economy on the eve of the take-off
At the end of the Second World War, Zug was a prosperous but unremarkable canton. Its income per inhabitant had exceeded the Swiss average since 1890. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe federal environment: banking secrecy, withholding tax and company law
The holding privilege of 1930 did not operate in isolation. Its attraction depended on the federal environment in which it was embedded. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnA Geneva comparison: the banker and the registrar
The contrast with Geneva, to which this book is a companion, is instructive at this point. In the interwar years, Geneva was already a banking centre of international rank. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnPractitioner's note: the holding company as a legal form
The holding company that the laws of 1924 and 1930 sought to attract was a legal form of Swiss company law and has remained one. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe Post-War Take-Off (1947–1990) — conclusion
Between 1947 and 1990, the canton of Zug built the business model that has defined it ever since. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe tax law of 1947
The post-war tax policy of the canton rested on a revision of the tax law that the voters approved on 16 March 1947 by 4,731 votes to 1,752. Only the commune of Neuheim voted against. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnFrom 88 to 4,828 holding companies
The effect of the post-war policy was slow at first and then dramatic. In 1949, the canton counted 88 holding companies. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe practice on mixed companies
The laws of 1930 and 1947 privileged holding companies and domicile companies, the latter being companies that had their registered seat in the canton but conducted no business there. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnPhilipp Brothers and the first commodity traders
The arrival of the American metals trader Philipp Brothers marks the beginning of the commodity trading cluster that would become the canton's most important industry. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnGerman groups, American multinationals and the headquarters economy
Others followed the commodity traders, who were the most visible beneficiaries of the post-war policy. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe anatomy of the three status companies
By the end of the 1950s, the tax regime of Zug distinguished three kinds of companies that enjoyed special treatment, in addition to the ordinary companies that were taxed at the general rates. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnWhy the capital came: neutrality, stability and the Cold War
The tax privileges explain why international companies chose Zug over other Swiss cantons. They do not fully explain why they chose Switzerland. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe political economy of consent
The tax policy of Zug was never the policy of a single party or a single government. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnSteuerfüsse and the rate competition
The cantonal tax system of Zug, like that of most Swiss cantons, works with a "Steuerfuss", a multiplier. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe economic result
The effects of the post-war tax policy on the economy of the canton were profound. Zug's share of Swiss national income doubled, from 1.2 per cent in 1965 to 2.5 per cent in 2005. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe critics
The success of the tax policy did not silence its critics. Those of the post-war period repeated, in new forms, the arguments of the 1920s. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnHarmonisation, Equalisation and Reform (1990–2026) — conclusion
Part B has followed the tax policy of Zug from its hesitant beginnings in the 1920s to the global minimum tax. Three phases stand out. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnFederal harmonisation: codifying the model
The Swiss constitution of 1874 had preserved the cantonal sovereignty in direct taxation that the constitution of 1848 established. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnInternational pressure: the European Union and the OECD
The codification of the status regimes in federal law coincided with the beginning of international pressure against them. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnFrom USR III to the TRAF
The first attempt at reform failed. The federal Corporate Tax Reform Act III, which proposed to abolish the status regimes and to offer the cantons a set of new instruments, including a patent box… Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe implementation in Zug
The canton implemented the TRAF through a partial revision of its tax law, the sixth, which entered into force on 1 January 2020. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe holding company after 2020
For the classic holding company, the reform changed above all the form of taxation. Since 1 January 2020, a holding company in Zug is taxed on its profits at the ordinary rate. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe taxation of individuals and the lump-sum regime
The fiscal attractiveness of Zug has always extended to individuals. The canton's income and wealth taxes, which it has repeatedly lowered, are among the lowest in Switzerland. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe national fiscal equalisation
Low taxes in Zug have a counterpart: the canton's contribution to the national fiscal equalisation. Swiss federalism has long combined competition between the cantons with mechanisms of solidarity. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnThe global minimum tax
The latest challenge to the canton's model comes from the agreement of the OECD and the G20 on a global minimum tax for large multinational groups, known as Pillar Two. Read more Zug · The Tax TurnPractitioner's note: rulings, substance and relocation
In daily practice, three features of the Zug tax environment matter as much as the statutory rates. The first is the practice of advance tax rulings. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyHome-Grown Industry and Its Transformations — conclusion
The industrial history of the canton did not end when the tax policy began. The enterprises founded in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries survived the crises of the interwar years,… Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyThe industrial base in figures
The image of Zug as a canton of letterbox companies obscures the size of its industrial base. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyLandis & Gyr: from family enterprise to global groups
Part A followed Landis & Gyr from its foundation as the Elektrotechnisches Institut Theiler & Co. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyMetallwarenfabrik, V-ZUG and Metall Zug
The Metallwarenfabrik, whose difficult birth after the failure of 1886 Part A described, followed a different path. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyBossard: two centuries of trade from Zug
The oldest international enterprise of the canton is neither a holding company nor an industrial manufacturer. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyRoche in Rotkreuz: from a small acquisition to the largest private employer
The most striking example of an industrial headquarters in the canton is the diagnostics centre of Roche in Rotkreuz. Its origins were modest. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyPaper, spinning and the end of the old industries
Not all of the canton's industrial enterprises survived. The Spinnerei an der Lorze in Baar, once the largest cotton spinning mill in Switzerland, entered a prolonged crisis from the late 1920s and… Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyDiversification: a dozen clusters
The resilience of the Zug economy rests, according to Bomio, on its diversification into about a dozen industry clusters. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyThe skilled workforce and the apprenticeship system
The history of the coffee trade shows how quickly a cluster can form and dissolve. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyWater, energy and the utilities
The infrastructure of an industrial economy includes its utilities, whose history in Zug reflects the history of its industry. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyA Geneva comparison: industry in two cantons
The comparison with Geneva, which runs through this book, is particularly instructive in the field of industry. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyPractitioner's note: the division of Landis & Gyr as a transaction pattern
The history of Landis & Gyr after 1987 follows a pattern that recurs in the transactions of Swiss industrial groups and that practitioners in Zug encounter regularly. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyIndustry and the global minimum tax
The global minimum tax, described in Part B, affects the industrial groups of the canton in a particular way. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyPractitioner's note: acquiring a Zug enterprise
The acquisition of an industrial enterprise in Zug by a foreign group raises questions that recur in practice. The first concerns the tax consequences of the change of control. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyThe Multinational Headquarters — conclusion
The multinational headquarters of Zug are the most tangible result of the canton's tax policy. They began to arrive in the late 1950s, as registered seats and holding companies. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyWhat a headquarters is
The word "headquarters" covers a wide range of functions. At one end stands the registered seat of a holding company, with a board that meets a few times a year and an administrative service provider… Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyThe life sciences cluster
The life sciences cluster of Zug is the product of four decades of arrivals. The pioneer was the American medical technology company Varian, which established its European headquarters in Zug in… Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyFinancial services and asset management
The canton's relationship with finance differs from that of Geneva and Zurich. Zug was never a banking centre of international rank. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomySika and the building materials industry
Sika, the specialty chemicals company for the construction and automotive industries, was founded in Zurich in 1910 by Kaspar Winkler as Kaspar Winkler & Co. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyThe recent arrivals: SGS from Geneva and Vontobel from Zurich
The German retail group Metro, founded by Otto Beisheim, established its international holding company in Baar in 1974 and concentrated European functions there in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyWhy groups choose Zug: the decision in practice
The decision of an international group to place a headquarters in Zug is rarely made on the basis of tax alone. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyMoving a headquarters: the legal mechanics
The move of a headquarters to Zug from another Swiss canton, as in the case of SGS, is legally simple. The company amends its articles of association to fix its new seat. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyThe Geneva–Zug competition
The move of SGS from Geneva to Zug touches on a sensitive point in Swiss federalism. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyThe international community as an asset
The international community that a headquarters economy creates becomes an asset of the location in its own right. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyThe economic weight of the headquarters
The headquarters economy has made Zug the canton with the highest economic output per inhabitant in Switzerland. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyThe limits of growth
The headquarters economy has costs that are borne above all by the residents of the canton. The most visible is the price of housing. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyThe Legal Framework of the Headquarters — conclusion
Part C has described the headquarters economy of Zug. Chapter I showed that the canton's industrial enterprises, Landis & Gyr, the Metallwarenfabrik, Bossard and Roche's diagnostics centre in… Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyThe seat and the commercial register
A company that establishes its headquarters in Zug does so, in legal terms, by fixing its registered seat in a commune of the canton and by entering that seat in the commercial register of the canton… Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyThe requirement of a Swiss resident representative
Swiss company law requires that a company limited by shares be represented by at least one person who resides in Switzerland. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyThe company law reform of 2023
The revision of the law on companies limited by shares, in force since 1 January 2023, modernised several features that matter to international groups. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyNon-financial reporting and due diligence
The Responsible Business Initiative, which would have made Swiss companies liable for human rights and environmental violations by the companies they control abroad, obtained a majority of the… Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyThe transparency register
The most important recent change in the legal framework for companies in Zug is the introduction of a central register of beneficial owners. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomySubstance and the international tax standards
The legal requirements of company law are easily met. The requirements of the international tax standards are more demanding. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyForeign staff: permits and quotas
A headquarters requires people, many of whom, in Zug, come from abroad. Citizens of the member states of the European Union and of the European Free Trade Association benefit from the free movement… Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyReal estate: the Lex Koller
A foreign group that wishes to acquire real estate for its headquarters in Zug must take into account the Federal Act on the Acquisition of Real Estate by Persons Abroad, known after the Federal… Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyThe courts of Zug
Because a headquarters economy generates disputes, the courts of the canton of Zug decide a considerable number of commercial and company law cases. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyThe governance of subsidiaries
Many of the companies in Zug are subsidiaries of foreign groups, whose governance raises questions that differ from those of independent companies. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyDisputes and arbitration
The international groups in Zug resolve many of their disputes through arbitration. Read more Zug · The Headquarters EconomyPractitioner's checklist: establishing a headquarters in Zug
The following checklist summarises the principal legal steps for a foreign group that establishes a headquarters in Zug. It is intended as an orientation for the practitioner. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IFrom Philipp Brothers to Marc Rich (1957–1994) — conclusion
The commodity trade came to Zug with Philipp Brothers in 1957 and grew to global importance with Marc Rich + Co. from 1974. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IPhilipp Brothers: the school of the traders
The history of the commodity trade in Zug begins with a company that had been founded more than half a century earlier in Germany. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IMarc Rich: the trader
Marc Rich was born in Antwerp on 18 December 1934 into a Jewish family that fled Europe during the Second World War and settled in the United States. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading ITrading across the lines of politics
The success of Marc Rich + Co. rested in large part on a willingness to trade where others would not. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IThe indictment of 1983
In 1983, federal prosecutors in New York indicted Marc Rich and Pincus Green on sixty-five criminal counts, including tax evasion, wire fraud, racketeering and trading with Iran in violation of the… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IRich in Zug
For the canton of Zug, Marc Rich was a difficult resident. His company was one of the largest taxpayers in the canton and one of its most important employers. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IThe sale of the company and the birth of Glencore
At the beginning of the 1990s, the company faced a crisis. An attempt to corner the zinc market failed and caused substantial losses, and senior traders pressed for a change in ownership. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IWhat the Rich era left behind
The Rich era left three legacies to the canton of Zug. The first is the cluster itself. Marc Rich + Co. trained a generation of traders, just as Philipp Brothers had trained Rich. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IThe oil market after 1973
The rise of Marc Rich + Co. cannot be understood without the transformation of the international oil market in the 1970s. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IThe office of a trader
The trading houses of the 1970s and 1980s were small in terms of staff, even when their turnover ran into billions. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IMutual assistance and extradition: the law then and now
Because the Rich case turned on the rules of international cooperation in criminal matters, the practitioner who advises a trader in Zug today must understand how these rules have changed. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IThe South African trade and the Swiss debate
The trade of Swiss companies with apartheid South Africa became the subject of a national debate in the 1990s and 2000s. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IThe sources: how the history of the traders is known
Since the history of the commodity traders of Zug is known only in part, the practitioner and the historian must be aware of the limits of the sources. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IA partnership of traders
Marc Rich + Co. was, from its foundation, a partnership of traders in all but legal form. Rich and Green held the majority of the shares, and senior traders received shares as they rose in the firm. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading INeutrality as a commercial asset: an assessment
The history of Philipp Brothers and Marc Rich + Co. in Zug raises a question that recurs throughout this book: to what extent did Swiss neutrality serve as a commercial asset for the traders, and at… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IGlencore and the Modern Cluster (1994–2026) — conclusion
In the three decades after Marc Rich left his company, Glencore grew from a private partnership of traders into a listed group that combines one of the largest commodity trading businesses in the… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IFrom Glencore International to Glencore plc
The company that Marc Rich sold to his managers in 1994 was renamed Glencore International and led by its chairman, Willy Strothotte. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IGlencore today
Glencore plc has its registered office in Saint Helier, Jersey, and its headquarters in Baar. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IThe legal proceedings of 2022 and 2024
The growth of Glencore was accompanied by a long series of accusations of corruption, environmental damage and human rights violations in the countries where it operated. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IThe cluster around Glencore
Glencore is the largest of the many commodity trading companies in Zug. According to the cantonal economic promotion office, more than 200 enterprises in the canton focus on commodities. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IThe partnership and the culture of the trading house
For most of its history, Glencore was owned by its senior employees. The partnership model that Marc Rich had practised, and that his managers continued after 1994, gave the traders a share in the… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading ICompliance after the convictions
The compliance obligations that follow from a resolution with the United States Department of Justice are demanding. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading ICoal, climate and the shareholders
A further challenge for Glencore, and for the trading cluster of Zug, concerns coal. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IThe structure of a trading group
The legal structure of a commodity trading group headquartered in Zug often follows a pattern along the following lines. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IGlencore and the canton
The relationship between Glencore and the canton of Zug is close and, at the same time, distant. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IOther groups in the orbit of the traders
The commodity cluster of Zug extends beyond the trading companies themselves to groups in related industries that have established their headquarters or principal companies in the canton. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading ITraders, consumer goods and the definition of the cluster
The statistics of the cluster depend on its definition. The cantonal economic promotion office distinguishes a commodities cluster of more than 200 enterprises from a consumer goods cluster of more… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IThe critics: Public Eye and the scrutiny of the trade
The commodity traders of Zug are organised in the Zug Commodity Association, and at national level in Suissenégoce, the Swiss association of commodity trading and shipping. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IThe Business of Trading and Its Weight — conclusion
Part D has followed the commodity trade in Zug from the arrival of Philipp Brothers in 1957 to the present. Chapter I described the formative years, when Philipp Brothers and Marc Rich + Co. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IWhat a commodity trader does
A commodity trader buys raw materials where they are produced and sells them where they are consumed. The simplicity of this description conceals a business of considerable complexity. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIntegration: from trading to production
The largest traders have integrated vertically, acquiring mines, oil fields, refineries, storage terminals, ports and ships. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading ITransit trade: why the goods never touch Switzerland
The commodities traded from Zug almost never pass through Switzerland. A cargo of copper concentrate bought from a mine in Chile and sold to a smelter in China is shipped directly from Chile to… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IThe weight of the trade: two measures
The economic weight of the commodity trade in Switzerland was, for many years, difficult to measure. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IZug's share and Zug's revenue
With 27 per cent of the value added of the Swiss commodity trade in 2024, Zug is the second centre of the industry in Switzerland after Geneva. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IBenchmarks, price reporting and market integrity
Commodity prices are determined in two ways. On the futures exchanges, prices are formed transparently through trading in standardised contracts. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IThe service cluster: shipping, inspection, finance and law
The commodity trade depends on a network of service providers, part of which is located in Zug. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IThe taxation of trading profits after 2020
With the abolition of the regime for mixed companies on 1 January 2020, the trading profits of the principal companies in Zug became subject to the ordinary profit tax. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IGeneva and Zug: two centres of one industry
The comparison with Geneva is particularly apt in the commodity trade, since the two cantons together account for more than 85 per cent of the Swiss industry. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading ICredit, counterparties and the fragility of the trade
The thin margins of the physical trade are accompanied by large exposures. A trader that buys a cargo of oil worth fifty or a hundred million dollars and sells it to a refinery on thirty days' credit… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IFederal policy on the commodity trade
The federal government has taken an increasing interest in the commodity trade since the early 2010s. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IPractitioner's note: advising a trader in Zug
The practitioner who advises a commodity trader in Zug must combine several fields of law. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIWhy traders borrow
A commodity trader needs money to buy the goods it sells. Between the moment it pays the seller and the moment it receives payment from the buyer, which may be weeks or months, the trader must… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIThe instruments of trade finance
The instruments of commodity trade finance range from the traditional to the complex. The oldest and still one of the most important is the documentary letter of credit. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIHedging, margin and liquidity
The financing of the physical trade is only one part of a trader's financial needs. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIInsurance: cargo, credit and political risk
Insurance complements the financing of the trade. Marine cargo insurance covers the loss of or damage to the goods in transit. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIThe bank's due diligence on the trader
A bank that finances a trader in Zug must satisfy its own regulatory obligations before it grants the financing. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIThe fraud exception in letters of credit
The independence of the letter of credit from the underlying sale is the foundation of its value: the seller is paid against compliant documents, whatever disputes may arise about the goods. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIZug and Geneva compared
The financing environment of the traders of Zug differs from that of their competitors in Geneva. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIThe banks and their retreat
The commodity trade of Switzerland was financed for decades above all by banks in Geneva, where several French, Dutch and Swiss banks maintained specialised commodity finance departments. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IISecurity under Swiss law
The security that a lender takes in a commodity financing is usually governed by the law of the place where the goods are located and, for receivables, by the law chosen by the parties or the law… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIEnforcement and insolvency in Zug
When a trader in Zug defaults, its lenders and creditors must enforce their claims under Swiss law. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIFraud in trade finance
The history of commodity finance is punctuated by frauds whose typical forms the practitioner in Zug must know. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIThe documents of the trade
The documents on which commodity finance rests deserve closer attention, since their integrity determines the security of the lenders. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIPrepayments and the debts of producing states
The prepayment agreements between traders and state-owned producers have attracted the attention of the International Monetary Fund and of the organisations that monitor the debts of developing… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIFinancing and sustainability
The financing of the commodity trade has become subject to the sustainability policies of the lenders. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIWarehousing, collateral management and the control of goods
Where commodities are stored before sale, in tanks, silos or metal warehouses, the lender's security depends on the control of the goods in storage. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIPayment flows and the choice of currency
The commodity trade is conducted overwhelmingly in United States dollars. Since oil, metals and most agricultural commodities are priced in dollars, the payments for the cargoes pass through the… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIPrivate credit and the new lenders
The lenders that have filled the gap left by the retreating banks include trade finance funds, private credit funds and specialised commodity finance firms. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIPractitioner's note: structuring a financing for a trader in Zug
The practitioner advising a bank or a trader on a financing in which a Zug company is the borrower or the security provider should address the following points. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIThe risk profile of the trade
The commodity trade is exposed to corruption to a degree that few other industries match. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIThe bribery of foreign public officials
Swiss criminal law has prohibited the bribery of foreign public officials since 2000, when Switzerland implemented the Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials of the Organisation… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIThe criminal liability of the company: Article 102
Swiss criminal law was for a long time based on the principle that only natural persons can commit crimes. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIGunvor: the first commodity trader convicted
The first commodity trader convicted under Article 102 was Gunvor, one of the large oil traders of Geneva. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIGlencore: the Zug case
The case against Glencore International AG, the principal trading company of the group in Baar, is the most important application of Article 102 in the canton of Zug. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IITrafigura: the first trial
The case against Trafigura, a trader headquartered in Geneva and Singapore, was the first case in which a commodity trader was tried before a Swiss court for bribery. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IILessons for the compliance programme of a trader in Zug
The three cases define the standard that a trader in Zug must meet to avoid liability under Article 102. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIThe liability of individuals
The corporate liability of Article 102 does not replace the liability of the individuals who commit the offences. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIConfiscation and compensation claims
The penalties imposed on the commodity traders under Article 102 consisted mostly of compensation claims. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIWhistleblowing
Bribes paid to public officials are not deductible for tax purposes. The Federal Act on Direct Federal Taxation and the harmonisation law expressly exclude the deduction of payments of bribes within… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIThe role of the cantonal prosecutors
The large corruption cases in the commodity trade have been prosecuted by the Office of the Attorney General, which has jurisdiction over bribery of foreign officials and money laundering where the… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IICorruption risk in the producing countries: the view from the other side
The corruption cases of the commodity trade have usually been described from the perspective of the traders and the prosecutors of the states where the traders are based. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIMoney laundering
The anti-money-laundering framework of Switzerland applies to financial intermediaries: banks, securities firms, insurance companies, asset managers, fiduciaries and other persons who accept, hold or… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IITransparency of payments to governments
The Code of Obligations requires companies active in the extraction of minerals, oil, natural gas or primary forest timber that are subject to an ordinary audit to publish an annual report on the… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIInternal investigations and cooperation with the authorities
The counter-proposal to the Responsible Business Initiative, in force since 2022, imposes on companies that import or process minerals or metals from conflict-affected and high-risk areas, above the… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIPractitioner's note: a compliance check for a trader in Zug
The practitioner who reviews the anti-corruption and anti-money-laundering position of a trader in Zug should ask the following questions. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IISanctions and Export Control — conclusion
Part E has examined the legal framework within which the commodity trade of Zug operates today. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIFrom neutrality to alignment
Chapter I of Part D described how the traders of Zug, in the Cold War, used Switzerland's non-participation in the embargoes of other states to trade where their competitors could not. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIThe measures that concern the commodity trade
The sanctions against Russia affect the commodity trade in several ways. They prohibit the purchase, import and transport of Russian crude oil and petroleum products, subject to the exceptions for… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIThe Swiss trade in Russian commodities before and after 2022
Before the invasion, Switzerland was the most important centre of the trade in Russian commodities. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIEnforcement: SECO and the Office of the Attorney General
The enforcement of the sanctions lies with SECO, which conducts administrative proceedings for minor violations, and with the Office of the Attorney General, which prosecutes particularly serious… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIThe reach of foreign sanctions
A trader in Zug must comply with Swiss sanctions. In practice, it must also take into account the sanctions of the European Union, the United Kingdom and the United States, because their reach… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIExport control
Beside the sanctions, the trade in certain goods is subject to export control. The Federal Act on the Control of Dual-Use Goods, Specific Military Goods and Strategic Goods, the Goods Control Act,… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIAsset freezes and the companies of Zug
The sanctions against Russia include the freezing of the assets of designated persons and entities and the prohibition of making funds and economic resources available to them. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IILicences, exceptions and wind-down periods
The sanctions contain exceptions and allow SECO to grant authorisations in specified cases. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IISanctions in contracts
The sanctions have transformed the contractual practice of the commodity trade. Trading contracts, financing agreements and charter parties now contain detailed sanctions clauses, which allocate the… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IINeutrality and sanctions: the Swiss debate
The adoption of the European sanctions against Russia in February 2022 provoked a debate in Switzerland about the compatibility of sanctions with neutrality. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIThe shadow fleet and maritime risk
The price cap and the embargoes on Russian oil have given rise to a fleet of tankers that transport Russian oil outside the reach of Western services. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IISanctions and the directors of Zug companies
The sanctions have a personal dimension for the directors of companies in Zug. A director of a company that violates the sanctions may be liable under the criminal provisions of the Embargo Act as a… Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIGold, refining and Switzerland
The investigation into the trade in Russian gold by a Zug trader, described above, touches on an industry in which Switzerland plays a dominant role. Read more Zug · Commodity Trading IIPractitioner's note: sanctions screening for a trader in Zug
The practitioner who advises a trader in Zug on sanctions compliance should ensure that the trader's programme includes at least the following elements. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe Wealthy Residents — conclusion
Zug is one of the three cantons with the highest average wealth per taxpayer in Switzerland. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsA canton of wealth
The statistics of the Federal Tax Administration show the concentration of private wealth in central Switzerland. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe taxation of income and wealth
The income tax of the canton is progressive, although its rates are among the lowest in Switzerland. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsTaxation according to expenditure in Zug
For wealthy foreign nationals who do not work in Switzerland, the canton offers the taxation according to expenditure, the lump-sum regime described in Part B. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsInheritance and gift taxes
The absence of an inheritance tax on transfers to descendants is one of the most important factors of the canton's attractiveness for wealthy families. Switzerland has no federal inheritance tax. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsWhy wealthy families move to Zug
The reasons for which wealthy families choose Zug are similar to those that attract companies. The taxes are low and the canton is close to Zurich and its airport. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe process of relocation
The relocation of a wealthy family to Zug involves several legal steps, which the practitioner must coordinate carefully. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe entrepreneur family and its companies
Many of the wealthiest residents of Zug are entrepreneurs or the heirs of entrepreneurs, whose wealth consists mainly of participations in family companies. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsReal estate for the wealthy residents
The wealthy families who move to Zug need housing, and they meet a market for high-end residential real estate that is among the most expensive in Switzerland. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe political debate in Zug
The attraction of wealthy residents is a matter of political debate in the canton. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsWealth, taxation and the fiscal equalisation
The concentration of wealthy residents in Zug has a direct effect on the canton's contribution to the national fiscal equalisation. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsPrivate wealth in crypto-assets and Digital Assets
A growing part of the wealth of the residents of Zug is held in crypto-assets and Digital Assets. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsZug and its neighbours
Zug is not the only canton that competes for wealthy residents in central Switzerland. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe tax administration and wealthy taxpayers
The relationship between the cantonal tax administration and wealthy taxpayers is characterised by the same pragmatism that Part B described for companies. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsSchools, health and the infrastructure of family life
The decision of a wealthy family to move to Zug depends on taxes and equally on the conditions of family life. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsSwiss families moving within Switzerland
Not all wealthy newcomers to Zug come from abroad. A significant part of the movement of wealthy families into the canton comes from other Swiss cantons, above all from Zurich, whose higher taxes on… Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsPractitioner's checklist: relocating a family to Zug
The practitioner who advises a wealthy family on a relocation to Zug should address the following points. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsAsset Managers, Family Offices and Trustees — conclusion
The private wealth economy of Zug consists of independent asset managers, family offices, trustees and fiduciaries, who serve the wealthy families of the canton and clients around the world, and of… Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsA private wealth economy without a private banking tradition
The private wealth economy of Zug differs from that of Geneva. Geneva's private banks, whose history the companion volume traces from the Protestant refuge to the present, have for centuries been the… Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe regulatory turn of 2020
Until 2020, independent asset managers in Switzerland were not subject to prudential supervision. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe requirements for portfolio managers and trustees
The Financial Institutions Act sets several conditions for a portfolio manager or trustee. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsFamily offices
A single family office is an organisation that manages the affairs of one wealthy family: its investments, its companies, its real estate, its taxes, its philanthropy, its administration and often… Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsAnti-money-laundering obligations of the professionals
The professionals of the private wealth economy are financial intermediaries within the meaning of the Anti-Money Laundering Act. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe banks behind the managers
The independent asset managers and family offices do not hold their clients' assets themselves. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsZug as a location for asset managers and family offices
The advantages of Zug as a location for asset managers and family offices are the same as those that attract wealthy families and companies. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe independent asset manager: a Swiss tradition
The independent asset manager is a characteristic figure of the Swiss financial centre. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsTrustees and the trust industry
The trustees of Zug administer trusts governed by foreign law for clients around the world. The trust industry of Switzerland grew in the second half of the twentieth century. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsRetrocessions and conflicts of interest
A question that has shaped the relationship between asset managers, banks and clients in Switzerland is that of retrocessions: payments that banks and product providers make to asset managers for the… Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsLiability and disputes
The relationship between an asset manager and its client is a mandate under the Code of Obligations, under which the asset manager owes the client a duty of diligence and loyalty. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsConfidentiality and professional secrecy
The professionals of the private wealth economy are bound by duties of confidentiality towards their clients. For banks, the violation of banking secrecy is a criminal offence under the Banking Act. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe multi-family office between advice and licensing
The multi-family office, which serves several unrelated families, occupies a position between the independent asset manager and the single family office. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe generational transition in the wealth economy
The private wealth economy of Zug is entering a period of generational transition. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsTechnology and the wealth economy
The private wealth economy is changing under the influence of technology. Digital platforms allow clients to view their portfolios across several banks, and asset managers use algorithms and data… Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsCross-border services to foreign clients
Many of the asset managers and trustees of Zug serve clients who live abroad. The provision of financial services across borders is subject to the rules of the clients' countries of residence. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsPractitioner's note: establishing a portfolio manager or family office in Zug
The practitioner who advises on the establishment of a portfolio manager or family office in Zug should address the following questions. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsTrusts, Foundations and Succession — conclusion
Part F has examined the private wealth economy of Zug. Chapter I described the wealthy residents of the canton, the taxation of their income, wealth and inheritances, the taxation according to… Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe need for structures
Wealthy families use legal structures to hold, manage and transmit their wealth. The structures serve several purposes: to keep the family's wealth together across generations, to protect it against… Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe trust in Swiss law
Switzerland does not have its own law of trusts. The civil law of Switzerland does not recognise the division of ownership between a legal owner, the trustee, and beneficial owners, the… Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe taxation of trusts
The taxation of trusts in Switzerland is not governed by statute. It follows a circular of the Swiss Tax Conference, which the cantons apply. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe foundation and its limits
The Swiss Civil Code provides for the foundation, a legal entity created by the dedication of assets to a specific purpose. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsForeign foundations and the Liechtenstein connection
Liechtenstein, which borders the canton of St. Gallen and shares the Swiss franc and the customs area with Switzerland, has long offered a foundation law that allows the creation of family… Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe company as an instrument of family wealth
For many families in Zug, the most important structure is a company. A family holding company, owned by the family members directly or through their own holding companies, can hold the family's… Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsThe Swiss law of succession
The law of succession determines what happens to the wealth of a person at death. Swiss succession law, contained in the Civil Code, provides for statutory heirs, the spouse and the descendants in… Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsInternational successions
The families of Zug are often international: the deceased may be a foreign national, the heirs may live in several countries and the assets may be located around the world. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsAsset protection and its limits
The protection of family wealth against creditors is a legitimate objective of wealth planning, which the structures described in this chapter can serve. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsLife insurance as a wealth structure
Life insurance policies, in particular unit-linked policies whose value depends on a portfolio of investments, are used by wealthy families as an instrument of wealth planning. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsDisputes over estates and structures
The wealth of the families of Zug is not immune to disputes. Disputes over estates, trusts and family companies are among the most bitter and the most expensive that the practitioner encounters. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsStructures for crypto-assets and Digital Assets
The families whose wealth includes crypto-assets and Digital Assets face specific questions in the planning of their succession. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsPhilanthropy
Many of the wealthy families of Zug support charitable causes, and the canton hosts a number of charitable foundations. Read more Zug · Wealth and Private ClientsPractitioner's note: reviewing a family's structures after a move to Zug
The practitioner who advises a family that has moved to Zug, or that plans to do so, should review its structures in light of the following questions. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe Birth of Crypto Valley (2013–2018) — conclusion
Crypto Valley was born between 2013 and 2018, beginning with the foundation of Bitcoin Suisse in 2013 and of the Ethereum Foundation in 2014. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyWhy a small canton became a crypto hub
The rise of Zug as a centre of blockchain technology has several explanations that reinforce each other. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe first actors
The first companies of the Swiss crypto industry were small firms founded by early users of Bitcoin, who saw in the technology an opportunity for new financial services. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe Ethereum Foundation
The decisive event in the early history of Crypto Valley was the establishment of the foundation that developed the Ethereum protocol. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe town accepts Bitcoin
On 1 July 2016, the town of Zug began to accept Bitcoin for the payment of fees at its residents' registration office, up to an amount of 200 francs. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe Crypto Valley Association
On 1 March 2017, the Crypto Valley Association was founded in Zug as a non-profit association to support the development of blockchain technology and the growth of the businesses that use it. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe ICO boom of 2017
In 2017, the market for crypto-assets experienced a speculative boom. The price of Bitcoin rose from about 1,000 dollars at the beginning of the year to nearly 20,000 dollars in December. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe end of the boom
The ICO boom ended in 2018, when the prices of crypto-assets fell sharply from their peak in December 2017 and many of the projects that had raised money in the boom failed to deliver the products… Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyA Geneva comparison: finance and technology
The Geneva volume describes a financial centre whose strength lies in private banking, commodity trading and the international organisations. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe legal environment of the early years
Entrepreneurs who came to Zug in 2014 and 2015 found no law that dealt with crypto-assets and Digital Assets, an absence that was itself an attraction. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe service providers arrive
A cluster needs more than founders. From 2015, lawyers, auditors, tax advisers and fiduciaries in Zug began to take on crypto clients. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyWho came to the valley
The early population of Crypto Valley was international and young. Founders came from Germany, Austria, Canada, the United States, Russia, Ukraine, Israel, China and Singapore. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe commodity traders and the blockchain
The encounter between the old Zug economy and the new one was limited. The commodity traders examined the use of distributed ledgers for trade finance and for the documentation of physical shipments. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyPractitioner's note: advising a token project in 2017
A lawyer in Zug who advised a token project in 2017 would typically work through a short list of questions. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyBitcoin Suisse and the brokerage model
Bitcoin Suisse deserves a closer look, because its business model shaped the early ecosystem. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyConferences, media and the image of the valley
The name "Crypto Valley" was a marketing success. Conferences held in Zug and Zurich from 2017 onwards brought investors, developers and journalists to the canton. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe reputational balance of the early years
The balance of the early years is mixed. On the positive side, Zug became the seat of the Ethereum Foundation, whose protocol became the second-largest crypto network in the world, and of a number of… Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyBlockchain in the cantonal administration
The town's Bitcoin experiment of 2016 was followed by further steps in public administration. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe founders' perspective
Research institutions followed the industry. The Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts opened its campus for computer science in Rotkreuz, in the canton of Zug, in 2019, where it developed… Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyRegulation and Maturity (2018–2026) — conclusion
From 2018, the crypto industry of Zug matured. FINMA's guidelines on initial coin offerings of February 2018 set out how Swiss law applied to tokens by distinguishing payment tokens, utility tokens… Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyFINMA's guidelines on initial coin offerings
On 16 February 2018, at the height of the uncertainty that followed the ICO boom, the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority published guidelines on the treatment of initial coin offerings… Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe federal government and the Blockchain Taskforce
The federal government also took up the subject. In January 2018, the Federal Department of Finance set up a working group on blockchain and ICOs. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe crypto banks
The maturing of the industry brought the banks. In August 2019, FINMA granted banking and securities dealer licences to two companies specialised in crypto-assets and Digital Assets: SEBA,… Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe canton accepts crypto-assets for taxes
In September 2020, the canton of Zug announced that from 2021 it would accept the payment of taxes in Bitcoin and ether, by both companies and individuals, up to an amount of 100,000 francs per… Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyCrypto winters and the resilience of the valley
The crypto industry is cyclical. After the boom of 2017, prices fell sharply in 2018 and remained low until 2020, a period that the industry calls a crypto winter. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe composition of the ecosystem
The ecosystem of Zug has changed in composition since the early years. The foundations that developed protocols and issued tokens, which dominated the landscape in 2017, have been joined by companies… Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe attitude of the authorities
The attitude of the cantonal authorities towards the crypto industry has been consistently supportive, but it has evolved. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyZug in the international competition
Crypto Valley competes with other crypto hubs around the world: Singapore, Dubai and Abu Dhabi, Hong Kong, London, the Cayman Islands, Liechtenstein, Malta and, in the United States, Miami and New… Read more Zug · Crypto ValleySelf-regulation and industry bodies
The industry organised itself alongside the regulators. The Crypto Valley Association developed codes of conduct and working groups on legal, tax and regulatory questions. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyAnti-money-laundering practice in Crypto Valley
Money laundering is the central risk that regulators associate with crypto-assets and Digital Assets. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyTokenisation of real assets
The ICO boom concerned tokens issued by projects to finance their own development. The later phase of the industry turned to the tokenisation of existing assets. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe talent market
The crypto industry of Zug depends on international talent. Developers, cryptographers, product managers, lawyers and compliance officers with experience in the field are scarce everywhere, so that… Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyPractitioner's note: onboarding a crypto company at a Swiss bank
A Swiss bank that onboards a crypto company today works through a set of questions that has become fairly standard. It identifies the beneficial owners and controlling persons in the ordinary way. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyStablecoins and the Swiss franc
Stablecoins are tokens whose value is tied to a reference asset, usually a currency such as the United States dollar. They have become the main means of payment within the crypto markets. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe Swiss National Bank and wholesale digital money
The Swiss National Bank has taken an interest in the technology without adopting crypto-assets. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyTax transparency: the crypto reporting framework
A further sign of maturity is the market for exchange-traded products on crypto-assets. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe popular initiative on Bitcoin reserves
The Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and the sanctions that followed affected the crypto industry as well. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe Foundation Model and Its Legal Questions — conclusion
The foundation became the typical legal form of the crypto projects of Zug because it had no owners and dedicated its assets to a purpose, a structure that matched the self-image of open protocols. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyWhy the foundation
Among the legal forms that Swiss law offers, the crypto projects of Zug chose the foundation more often than any other. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe Swiss foundation in outline
The foundation is regulated in Articles 80 to 89a of the Swiss Civil Code. A foundation is established by the dedication of assets to a particular purpose, which the founder declares in a public deed… Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe supervisor's response
The influx of crypto foundations confronted the federal supervisory authority, which had supervised mainly charitable and family-related foundations with conventional investments, with a new type of… Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyFoundations and financial market law
The foundation form did not remove the project from financial market law, because the regulatory classification of a token depends on its function whatever the legal form of its issuer. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe tax treatment of foundations and token sales
The tax treatment of the foundations was a central question for the projects. A Swiss foundation with a public-benefit purpose can be exempted from profit and capital taxes. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe question of substance
A foundation with its seat in Zug and a board whose majority lived abroad raised the question where the foundation was actually managed. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe decentralised autonomous organisation
The foundations were designed as a transitional structure, since the projects intended to hand over governance to their token holders once the protocol was running. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyCompetition from other jurisdictions
Zug's foundation model faces competition from several jurisdictions that have created legal forms designed for crypto projects. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyAccounting for crypto-assets
Geneva, which has its own tradition of foundations, is the seat of many international foundations that pursue humanitarian, scientific and diplomatic purposes, often linked to the international… Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe liability of the board
Members of a foundation board owe duties of care and loyalty to the foundation and can be liable for damage that they cause by breaching those duties. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyGrants and the funding of the ecosystem
Many foundations use their funds mainly for grants, with which the Ethereum Foundation, the Web3 Foundation and others support developers, researchers and projects that build on their protocols. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyWithholding tax and stamp duty
Two federal taxes deserve particular attention in the structuring of token projects: the withholding tax and the stamp duties. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyDissolution and relocation of a foundation
A foundation cannot simply be wound up by its board, since it is dissolved by law when its purpose can no longer be achieved. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe Ethereum Foundation as a model
The Ethereum Foundation illustrates how a crypto foundation can develop over a decade. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe association as an alternative wrapper
Some projects in Zug use the association under Articles 60 ff. of the Civil Code, whose features deserve a short comparison with the foundation. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyThe limited company and the operating entity
Many projects combine several entities: a foundation or an association holds the protocol's treasury and pursues the non-profit purpose, while one or more limited companies develop software, provide… Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyDisputes and the courts
Disputes involving crypto foundations have reached the Swiss courts only occasionally. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyFoundations and anti-money-laundering compliance
A crypto foundation that receives contributions in crypto-assets, pays grants in crypto-assets or holds them for others may have obligations under the Anti-Money Laundering Act. Read more Zug · Crypto ValleyPractitioner's checklist: structuring a token project in Zug
The following checklist, which does not replace legal advice on the individual case, summarises the questions that a project should address before it establishes an entity in Zug. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkFinancial Market Law and Crypto-Assets — conclusion
Swiss financial market law applies to crypto-assets and Digital Assets according to their economic function. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe principle of technology neutrality
Swiss financial market law regulates activities and instruments by their economic function without asking which technology an institution uses. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe token classification in practice
FINMA's classification of tokens into payment tokens, utility tokens and asset tokens remains the starting point of every analysis, although its application has become more refined since 2018. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkBanking law: deposits and custody
The Banking Act prohibits persons who are not banks from accepting deposits from the public on a professional basis. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkSecurities law: prospectus and trading
The Financial Services Act, in force since 1 January 2020, requires a prospectus for public offers of securities in Switzerland and for the admission of securities to trading on a trading venue,… Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkFinancial institutions: securities firms and asset managers
The Financial Institutions Act of 2018, in force since 2020, regulates securities firms, fund management companies, managers of collective assets, portfolio managers and trustees. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkAnti-money-laundering law
The Anti-Money Laundering Act of 1997 applies to financial intermediaries, which it defines to include persons who professionally accept or hold assets belonging to others, or who assist in their… Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkCollective investment schemes and staking
Some crypto business models resemble collective investment schemes. A provider that pools the crypto-assets of several clients and invests them according to a strategy may be operating a fund. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkMarket integrity and enforcement
The rules against insider dealing and market manipulation in the Financial Market Infrastructure Act apply to securities admitted to trading on a Swiss trading venue. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe cantonal role in Zug
The canton of Zug has no competence to regulate financial markets, although its authorities play a part in the legal framework of the crypto industry. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe early practice of FINMA (2014–2017)
FINMA's approach to crypto-assets developed in stages before the ICO guidelines of 2018. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkCriminal law and crypto-assets
Swiss criminal law protects crypto-assets and Digital Assets through its general provisions. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkSanctions law
Swiss sanctions law applies to crypto-assets in the same way as to other assets. The Embargo Act authorises the Federal Council to adopt measures that implement sanctions of the United Nations, the… Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkData protection and the blockchain
The revised Federal Act on Data Protection entered into force on 1 September 2023 and applies to the processing of personal data by private persons and federal bodies. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkCapital and risk management at crypto banks
A bank that holds crypto-assets on its own balance sheet or in custody for clients faces specific risks. The market risk of volatile crypto-assets can be large. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkPayment systems and the National Bank Act
The National Bank Act gives the Swiss National Bank oversight of systemically important payment systems and securities settlement systems. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkDeposit protection and investor compensation
Clients of Swiss banks are protected by the deposit guarantee scheme up to 100,000 francs per client and bank. The scheme covers deposits in francs and foreign currencies. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkPractitioner's note: the regulatory analysis of a crypto business in Switzerland
An adviser who analyses the regulatory position of a crypto business in Switzerland typically proceeds in four steps. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe DLT Act and Private Law — conclusion
The DLT Act of 2020 adapted Swiss law to distributed ledger technology without creating a special crypto law. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe legislative process
The Federal Council's report of December 2018 concluded that Swiss law was generally suitable for distributed ledger technology but identified gaps in three areas: the transfer of rights by means of… Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkLedger-based securities
The centrepiece of the Act in private law is the ledger-based security, in German Registerwertrecht. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe registration agreement and the issuer's liability
The registration agreement is the contractual basis of a ledger-based security. It must provide that the right is registered in the securities ledger and can be exercised and transferred only through… Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkCrypto-assets in bankruptcy
The second main area of the Act is insolvency law. Before the Act, it was uncertain whether crypto-assets held by a custodian for its clients belonged to the clients or to the bankruptcy estate of… Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe bankruptcy of a crypto custodian in practice
The rules have been tested in practice. The international collapses of 2022 showed the importance of clear segregation. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe DLT trading facility
The third area of the Act is market infrastructure, where the Act created a new type of financial market infrastructure in the Financial Market Infrastructure Act: the DLT trading facility. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkDLT securities and the Anti-Money Laundering Act
The Act defines DLT securities as securities in the form of ledger-based securities or other uncertificated securities held in distributed electronic registers that give the creditors power of… Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkPrivate international law
Crypto-assets move across borders by design. Because the question which law governs a ledger-based security or a token transfer arises in every cross-border case, the DLT Act amended the Private… Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkTokens that are not securities
The DLT Act did not regulate the private-law status of payment tokens and other tokens that do not represent a right against an issuer. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe DLT Blanket Ordinance
The Federal Council adopted an ordinance to implement the DLT Act, known as the DLT Blanket Ordinance, which amended several ordinances, among them the Banking Ordinance, the Financial Market… Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkLedger-based securities in corporate practice
The use of ledger-based securities for shares raises practical questions of company law. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkCollateral and the pledge of crypto-assets
Crypto-assets are increasingly used as collateral. Clients of crypto banks borrow against their Bitcoin or ether, while traders post crypto-assets as margin on derivatives exchanges. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkDebt enforcement against crypto-assets
Creditors who wish to enforce a claim against a debtor who holds crypto-assets face practical obstacles. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkSuccession and crypto-assets
Crypto-assets raise particular problems in succession. The heirs of a deceased person acquire the estate by operation of law, including the crypto-assets, although they can access self-custodied… Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkTokenised funds and the L-QIF
Since 1 March 2024, Swiss law has allowed the establishment of limited qualified investor funds, known as L-QIF. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe DLT Act in the courts
The courts have so far had few occasions to interpret the DLT Act. The ledger-based security has been used mainly in transactions without disputes. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkAn assessment of the DLT Act
Five years after its entry into force, the DLT Act can be assessed. Its legal achievements are considerable. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkConsumer protection and the retail investor
The DLT Act did not contain specific rules for the protection of retail investors in crypto-assets, so that such protection results from the general laws. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkTax consequences of the DLT Act
The DLT Act did not change tax law, although its instruments have tax consequences that practitioners must consider. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkPractitioner's note: issuing tokenised shares in a Zug company
A Zug company that wishes to issue its shares as ledger-based securities should consider the following points. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkReform, MiCA and the Regulatory Competition — conclusion
After the DLT Act, Swiss crypto regulation has entered a second phase of reform. The proposed licences for payment instrument institutions and crypto institutions would bring stablecoin issuers and… Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe unfinished agenda after the DLT Act
The DLT Act solved the problems that the Federal Council had identified in 2018, although the market soon raised new ones. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe proposed payment instrument institution and stablecoins
The proposed licence for payment instrument institutions is intended to replace the fintech licence of the Banking Act. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe proposed crypto institution
The second proposed licence is for crypto institutions. It would cover the custody of crypto-assets for clients and trading in crypto-assets that are not securities, such as payment tokens and… Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe European Union's MiCA regime
The European Union adopted the Regulation on Markets in Crypto- Assets in May 2023, the first comprehensive regime for crypto-assets in a large economic area. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkComparing the Swiss and European approaches
The Swiss and European approaches differ in method. MiCA is a special regime for crypto-assets that supplements the existing financial services law of the Union, whereas the Swiss framework applies… Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe Basel standard on banks' crypto exposures
The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision adopted a standard on the prudential treatment of banks' exposures to crypto-assets in December 2022 and amended it in 2024. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkTax transparency and the CARF
Switzerland has decided to implement the OECD Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework together with amendments to the Common Reporting Standard. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkDecentralised finance and the limits of regulation
Decentralised finance poses a challenge to every regulatory regime. A protocol that allows users to lend, borrow and trade crypto-assets through smart contracts without an intermediary has no… Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkZug in the regulatory competition
The regulatory framework is one of the main factors in the international competition between crypto hubs. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkLiechtenstein: the neighbour as a gateway
Liechtenstein adopted its Token and Trustworthy Technology Service Provider Act in October 2019 and brought it into force on 1 January 2020. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkSingapore and Hong Kong
Singapore regulates crypto service providers under the Payment Services Act of 2019, which introduced a licence for digital payment token services. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkDubai and Abu Dhabi
The United Arab Emirates have created several regimes for crypto-assets. Abu Dhabi Global Market, a financial free zone with its own common law courts, introduced a framework for crypto-assets in… Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe United Kingdom and the United States
The United Kingdom has built its crypto regime in stages. Since 2020, crypto service providers have had to register with the Financial Conduct Authority for anti-money-laundering purposes. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkLessons for Switzerland
The international comparison suggests several lessons for Switzerland. The first is that regulatory clarity has become a common good. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe instruments of FINMA's practice
FINMA's practice relies on instruments that shape the market without being laws. Its guidance notices, called Aufsichtsmitteilungen, explain how FINMA applies the law in specific areas. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkSwitzerland, the European Union and financial market access
The relationship between Switzerland and the European Union frames the question of market access for the crypto industry. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe Swiss position in international standard setting
Switzerland takes part in the international bodies that set standards for crypto-assets. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkThe future of the Swiss framework
The Swiss framework for crypto-assets and Digital Assets will continue to develop over the coming years. Read more Zug · Regulatory FrameworkPractitioner's checklist: Swiss regulatory questions for a crypto business
The following checklist summarises the regulatory questions that a crypto business in Zug should address, complementing the checklist on the structuring of token projects at the end of Part G. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastFrom the Soviet Collapse to 2022 — conclusion
Between 1991 and 2022, Zug became one of the places through which the raw materials of the former Soviet Union reached world markets. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe opening of the East
The dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991 opened the largest reserves of raw materials in the world to international trade. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastGlencore and the Russian producers
Glencore, the successor of Marc Rich + Co, became the most important Western partner of the Russian and Kazakh raw material producers. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastOther traders and the Russian oil trade
Glencore was not alone. The Geneva traders Gunvor, Vitol, Trafigura and Litasco, the trading arm of Lukoil, handled a large share of Russian oil exports in the 2000s and 2010s. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastWhy Zug
The reasons why Russian and Kazakh groups chose Zug were the same that attracted other international companies: low taxes, the tax privileges for holding and domiciliary companies until 2020,… Read more Zug · Zug and the EastRussian residents in Zug
The economic ties brought people. Managers and employees of the Russian groups and their Swiss partners moved to Zug, while wealthy Russians, Kazakhs and Ukrainians bought property in the canton and… Read more Zug · Zug and the EastKazakhstan and Central Asia
Kazakhstan occupies a special place in the relations between Switzerland and the East. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastUkraine
Ukraine was a trading partner of Zug companies long before the war. Its exports of grain, iron ore, steel and sunflower oil passed through Swiss trading houses. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe trade in figures
Official trade statistics give only an incomplete picture of the commodity trade with the East. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe criticism before 2022
Criticism of the ties between Swiss traders and the producers of the former Soviet Union was not new in 2022. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastPrivatisation and the new owners
The trade with the East cannot be understood without the privatisation of Soviet industry in the 1990s. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastSwiss proceedings in the 1990s and 2000s
Swiss prosecutors and courts became involved in the affairs of the East early on. In 1998 and 1999, the Geneva prosecutor investigated the Lugano-based construction company Mabetex, which had… Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe turning point of 2014
The Russian annexation of Crimea in March 2014 and the war in the Donbas marked the first break in the relations between the West and Russia. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe typical Russian structure in Zug
The structures that Russian groups used in Zug often followed a similar pattern. At the top there could be a holding company in Cyprus, the Netherlands or another jurisdiction with a favourable tax… Read more Zug · Zug and the EastGazprom's Swiss presence
Apart from the pipeline companies, the Russian gas company had other activities in Switzerland. It held stakes in gas trading and marketing companies in Europe, some of which had Swiss subsidiaries. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastService providers for the Eastern business
The Eastern business supported a group of specialised service providers in Zug. Law firms advised on trade contracts, prepayment structures, arbitration and sanctions. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastArbitration as the forum of the Eastern trade
Contracts between Western traders and producers from the former Soviet Union seldom had reason to provide for the jurisdiction of Russian or Kazakh courts. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe view from the producing countries
The relations between Zug and the East appear differently from the perspective of the producing countries. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastZug in the Russian business press
The Russian business press also took an interest in the Zug connection. Reports on the annual accounts of Russian groups could mention their Swiss trading companies and the profits booked in the… Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe Caucasus and the Caspian
The Caucasus and the Caspian region formed a further part of the Eastern business of Zug. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastPractitioner's note: the legacy of Eastern ties in Zug structures
Advisers who take on companies in Zug with a history of ties to Russia or the former Soviet Union should examine that history carefully. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastNord Stream: A Pipeline Company in Zug — conclusion
Nord Stream AG was established in Zug in 2005 as a joint venture of Gazprom and European energy companies. Its pipeline through the Baltic Sea began operating in 2011 and 2012. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe project
The idea of a gas pipeline through the Baltic Sea from Russia to Germany dates back to the 1990s. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastWhy Zug
Several factors made Zug a plausible seat for the pipeline company. The shareholders came from four countries, which made a neutral seat attractive for their joint venture. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastConstruction and operation
Construction of the pipeline began in April 2010. The first of the two lines was inaugurated in November 2011 in the presence of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and… Read more Zug · Zug and the EastNord Stream 2
In 2015, Gazprom and several European companies agreed to build two further lines parallel to the first pipeline. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe American sanctions and the Swiss contractor
The United States adopted sanctions against the project in December 2019 through the Protecting Europe's Energy Security Act. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe end of Nord Stream 2 AG
On 22 February 2022, after Russia recognised the separatist regions of eastern Ukraine, the German government stopped the certification of Nord Stream 2. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe sabotage of September 2022
On 26 September 2022, explosions destroyed three of the four lines of Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 in the Baltic Sea, near the Danish island of Bornholm. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastWhat Nord Stream meant for Zug
Nord Stream AG itself was not placed on the Swiss or European sanctions lists, since its shareholders included European companies. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe politics of the boards
The composition of the Nord Stream boards made the pipeline companies political from the start. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastFinancing Nord Stream
The financing of the first pipeline was one of the largest project financings in Europe. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastLegal disputes with the European Union
Nord Stream 2 AG fought the European Union's attempts to subject its pipeline to the rules of the internal gas market. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe local dimension
For the canton of Zug, the pipeline companies were employers and taxpayers like others. Nord Stream AG and Nord Stream 2 AG together employed a few hundred people in the canton at their peak. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe German side of the story
In Germany, the history of Nord Stream became the subject of political reckoning after 2022. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastNord Stream and the Swiss authorities
The Swiss federal authorities had no direct role in Nord Stream. The pipeline did not cross Swiss territory, and Switzerland bought only small amounts of gas through it. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastGovernance lessons from Nord Stream
The Nord Stream companies offer lessons for the governance of international joint ventures with state-linked shareholders. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastA chronology of Nord Stream
The main events in the history of the Nord Stream companies can be summarised as follows. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastWhat remains of the pipelines
One line of Nord Stream 2 survived the explosions of September 2022 but has never been put into operation and has been under pressure since the sabotage. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastNord Stream and the image of Zug abroad
Before 2022, the international press mentioned the seat of the Nord Stream companies in Zug mainly as a detail. After the invasion and the sabotage, the detail attracted more attention. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastEnergy security and the Swiss gas supply
In 2021, Switzerland depended on imported gas for about 15 per cent of its final energy consumption, having no domestic production and no large storage facilities of its own. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastA Geneva comparison
Geneva had no Nord Stream, but it had the Russian oil traders. Litasco, the trading arm of Lukoil, and Gunvor, founded by a close associate of the Russian president, were based there, as were the… Read more Zug · Zug and the EastPractitioner's note: composition proceedings for a sanctioned company in Zug
The Nord Stream 2 case offers lessons for advisers of companies that become insolvent because of sanctions. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastSanctions and Their Aftermath (2022–2026) — conclusion
On 28 February 2022, Switzerland adopted the European Union's sanctions against Russia in full. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastSwitzerland's turn of 28 February 2022
In the first days after the Russian invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, the Swiss government hesitated. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe content of the sanctions
The sanctions adopted by Switzerland comprise financial measures, trade measures and measures against persons. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe traders' withdrawal
Glencore announced at the beginning of March 2022 that it would review its stakes in Rosneft and En+. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastRussian companies in Zug under sanctions
The sanctions hit several Russian-owned companies in Zug directly. EuroChem, the fertiliser producer headquartered in the canton, was affected when the European Union placed its founder Andrey… Read more Zug · Zug and the EastFrozen assets
The freezing of assets of sanctioned persons became the most visible part of the Swiss sanctions. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe question of confiscation
The question whether frozen Russian assets can be confiscated and used for the reconstruction of Ukraine has been debated in Switzerland as elsewhere. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastEnforcement and prosecution
The enforcement of the sanctions requires both administrative supervision and criminal prosecution. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastKazakhstan and the transit trade
The sanctions have increased the importance of Kazakhstan and other Central Asian states as transit countries. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe effect on Zug's economy
The effect of the sanctions on the economy of Zug has been limited in aggregate. The Russian-linked companies accounted for a small share of the canton's employment and tax revenues. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastNeutrality and the sanctions debate
The adoption of the sanctions has raised questions about Swiss neutrality that go beyond the economy of Zug. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastSECO and the machinery of sanctions
The implementation of the sanctions placed a heavy burden on the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastThe prohibition of trust services
The sanctions extended to the professional services that form an important part of Zug's economy. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastDelisting and legal protection
Persons placed on the Swiss sanctions list can ask the Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research (EAER) to remove them. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastRussian residents and their permits
The sanctions did not automatically affect the residence permits of Russian nationals in Switzerland. Most Russian residents were not sanctioned and continued to live and work in the country. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastInsurance, shipping and the price cap in practice
The oil price cap rests on the control of services that the Western economies dominate: insurance, shipping, finance and brokerage. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastBelarus
The sanctions against Russia were accompanied by sanctions against Belarus, which supported the invasion. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastRussian countermeasures and Swiss companies in Russia
The sanctions war ran in both directions. Russia adopted countermeasures against the states that imposed sanctions, which it classified as unfriendly states. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastSanctions in the courts: contracts that could not be performed
The sanctions produced a wave of commercial disputes. Traders had concluded long-term contracts with Russian producers and with customers who had counted on Russian supplies. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastSanctions against third-country intermediaries
From 2023, the European Union increasingly listed companies in third countries that helped Russia to circumvent the sanctions. Read more Zug · Zug and the EastPractitioner's note: sanctions compliance for a Zug company
A company in Zug that trades internationally must build a sanctions compliance programme that covers several legal systems. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe Languages of Zug — conclusion
German is the official language of the canton of Zug and Swiss German its spoken language, but English has become the working language of its international economy. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureGerman, Swiss German and the official language
The canton of Zug belongs to the German-speaking part of Switzerland. Its authorities and courts conduct their business in German. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe first English speakers
English speakers came to Zug long before the commodity traders. The most important early example was the Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk Company, founded in Cham in 1866 by the American brothers Charles… Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe post-war companies
The transformation began after the Second World War. The canton's tax policy, which Part B described, attracted holding and domiciliary companies from the 1950s. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe growth of the foreign population
The growth of the international economy brought a growth of the foreign population. In 1950, the canton of Zug had about 42,000 inhabitants, and foreigners made up a small share. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureEnglish as the lingua franca of the international economy
The role of English in Zug is that of a lingua franca, a common language used by people with different first languages. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe domains of English and German
The domains of the two languages can be described roughly. English dominates in the international companies, in the professional services that work for them, in the international schools, in the… Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe international schools
The international schools are a central part of the English-speaking infrastructure of Zug. The International School of Zug and Luzern, founded in 1961, is the largest. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureMedia, churches and associations
English-speaking residents have created their own institutions. Anglican and other English-language congregations hold services in the region. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureSwiss residents and English
For Swiss residents of Zug, English has become a part of daily life. Young people learn it at school, consume English-language media and use it at work. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe economics of a working language
From an economic point of view, English lowers the costs of doing business across borders. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureA Geneva comparison
Geneva offers a useful comparison. The official language of the canton of Geneva is French. The city has been a centre of international diplomacy since the founding of the League of Nations in 1920. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureMeasuring English in the canton
The Federal Statistical Office measures language use through its structural survey. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureSwiss German in the workplace
In the international companies of Zug, English is the language of meetings, e-mails and documents. Swiss German does not disappear, however. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureLanguage courses and the integration offer
The canton of Zug, the municipalities and private providers offer German courses at all levels. The cantonal integration programme subsidises courses for foreign residents with limited means. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe language of the crypto community
The crypto industry of Zug is the most thoroughly English-speaking sector of the canton. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureOther language communities
English is not the only foreign language in the international economy of Zug. The Russian-speaking community, which Part I described, had its own social and business networks before 2022. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureFederal language policy and English
The Confederation pursues an active policy for its national languages. The Federal Act on National Languages and Understanding between the Linguistic Communities of 2007 obliges the federal… Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe earlier language of the elites
The spread of English in Zug has a historical parallel. In the eighteenth century, French was the language of the European elites. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureMarketing the canton in English
The canton of Zug markets itself to international companies in English. Its economic promotion office publishes brochures, websites and presentations in English that present the canton's advantages… Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureEnglish in the local economy
The international economy has carried English into the local economy of the canton. Estate agents advertise apartments in English to reach international buyers and tenants. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructurePractitioner's note: working in English with Swiss counterparties
Advisers who work with international clients in Zug should be aware of the practical limits of English in the canton. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureEnglish in Law, Courts and Administration — conclusion
English has entered Swiss law and administration in stages, but it has not become an official language. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe language of Swiss law
Swiss federal law is published in German, French and Italian, and all three versions are equally authoritative. Romansh versions exist for important texts. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureCompany law and the commercial register
Swiss company law has gradually made room for English. The revision of accounting law that entered into force on 1 January 2013 allows companies to keep their accounts and to prepare their annual… Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureTax administration
The tax administration of the canton of Zug communicates with taxpayers in German. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureCourts and civil procedure
Swiss courts conduct their proceedings in the official language of the canton. In Zug, that means German. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe Federal Supreme Court
The Federal Supreme Court in Lausanne conducts its proceedings in the official languages of the Confederation. Its judgments are written in the language of the contested decision. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureArbitration in English
International arbitration is the field in which English has become most firmly established in Swiss legal practice. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureContracts in English under Swiss law
Many contracts concluded by Zug companies are drafted in English and governed by Swiss law. This combination is common in international business, but it raises particular questions. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe legal profession and English
The legal profession in Zug has adapted to the English-speaking economy. The larger law firms of the canton and the Zug offices of Zurich firms work mainly in English for their international clients. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe cantonal administration and English
The cantonal administration of Zug has taken steps to serve English-speaking residents and companies. The economic promotion office works in English with companies considering a move to the canton. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureEnglish in the regulation of financial markets
The financial market authorities have adapted more quickly than the cantonal institutions. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureNotaries, public deeds and the land register
Many transactions in Swiss law require a public deed drawn up by a notary or another authorised official. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureEmployment law in English
Employment contracts in the international companies of Zug are usually drafted in English. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureCriminal proceedings and interpreters
Criminal proceedings are conducted in the official language of the canton. The Swiss Criminal Procedure Code guarantees a person who does not understand the language of the proceedings the right to… Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureLegal education and English
Swiss universities have responded to the demand for English-speaking lawyers. The law faculties of Zurich, Geneva, Basel, St. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureTranslation, technology and the future of the language barrier
Machine translation has changed the practical significance of the language barrier. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureMutual legal assistance and translation
International cooperation in legal matters involves Zug frequently, since many of the companies and persons concerned by foreign investigations have their seat or residence in the canton. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureLessons from other commercial courts
The discussion about English-language proceedings in Swiss cantons draws on experiences abroad. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureEnglish in the everyday work of the Zug authorities
The formal rules on the official language describe only part of the reality. In their everyday work, the authorities of Zug use English more often than the rules suggest. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureEnglish in public procurement and state contracts
The canton and the municipalities of Zug buy goods and services under the rules of public procurement. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructurePractitioner's note: bilingual documentation for a Zug company
An international company in Zug should organise its documentation with the two languages in mind. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureTalent, Society and the Limits of a Second Language — conclusion
The international economy of Zug depends on English because it recruits on a global labour market. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe international labour market of Zug
The companies of Zug recruit on an international labour market. Commodity traders look for traders, analysts, risk managers and operators with experience in the markets of their products. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureImmigration law and its limits
Swiss immigration law distinguishes between nationals of the European Union and the European Free Trade Association and nationals of other states. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe political debate on immigration
Immigration has been a central issue of Swiss politics for decades. The international economy of Zug has been part of the debate. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureHousing and the cost of living
The international economy of Zug has made the canton one of the most expensive places to live in Switzerland. Average rents in Zug are the highest of all Swiss cantons. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureIntegration and parallel societies
The integration of foreign residents is a declared aim of Swiss and cantonal policy. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureNaturalisation and the political community
Foreign residents who wish to become Swiss citizens must meet federal and cantonal requirements. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe international community's voice
The international community has found indirect ways of making its voice heard. The companies speak through their business associations, which are consulted on legislation and have influence in… Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureEnglish and the cantonal identity
The spread of English raises the question of the canton's identity. Zug has a long history as a small Catholic canton in central Switzerland, with a strong local identity rooted in its old town, its… Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe limits of a second language
The experience of Zug shows both the strengths and the limits of English as a second working language. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureA comparison with Geneva, Singapore and Dubai
The comparison with other international centres shows different ways of dealing with the language question. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe expatriate package and its evolution
The traditional expatriate package included a generous salary, housing, school fees for the children, home leave and tax equalisation. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureDual-career couples
Many international employees who come to Zug have partners with careers of their own. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureHealthcare in a second language
The healthcare system of the canton operates in German, but it has adapted to the international population. Many doctors and nurses in the hospitals and clinics of the region speak English. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe children of the international community
Children who grow up in Zug in international families often speak several languages. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureEnglish, wages and the local labour market
The spread of English has consequences for Swiss employees as well. Knowledge of English has become a requirement for many well-paid positions in the canton, particularly in the international… Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureRemote work and the new mobility
The spread of remote work since 2020 has changed the mobility of international professionals. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureAssociations, sport and cultural life
Local associations are the backbone of social life in Swiss municipalities. Sports clubs, choirs, music societies, carnival guilds and local history societies bring residents together across social… Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureOptions for the canton
The analysis of this part suggests several options for the canton of Zug in dealing with the language question. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureThe view of the international community
Surveys of expatriates in Switzerland give an indication of how the international community sees the language question. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructureLanguage and the reputation of the location
The language question also affects the canton's reputation among international companies. Read more Zug · English as InfrastructurePractitioner's note: advising an expatriate moving to Zug
An adviser who assists an expatriate executive moving to Zug should address the language question as part of the relocation. Read more Zug · Zug 2035The Forces of Change — conclusion
The forces that will shape Zug until 2035 are already visible. The global minimum tax has ended the era in which low tax rates alone decided the location of multinational groups, while it has given… Read more Zug · Zug 2035The end of tax competition as Zug knew it
For seventy years, low taxes were the foundation of Zug's business model. The canton attracted holding companies, domiciliary companies, commodity traders and crypto foundations with tax rates well… Read more Zug · Zug 2035The canton's windfall and its uses
The minimum tax has had a paradoxical effect on the canton's finances. Since large groups in Zug now pay more tax, the canton receives substantial additional revenue. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Fiscal equalisation and national solidarity
The Swiss system of fiscal equalisation redistributes resources from the financially strong cantons to the financially weak ones. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Geopolitics and the fragmentation of trade
The international environment has become more hostile to open trade. The war in Ukraine, the rivalry between the United States and China, the use of sanctions and tariffs as instruments of foreign… Read more Zug · Zug 2035The energy transition and critical minerals
The energy transition will reshape the commodity trade. The demand for oil and coal is expected to decline over the coming decades, while the demand for copper, nickel, cobalt, lithium and other… Read more Zug · Zug 2035Technology: artificial intelligence and tokenisation
Technological change will affect all the sectors of Zug's economy. Artificial intelligence is transforming the analysis of markets, the management of risks and the processing of documents in trading,… Read more Zug · Zug 2035Life sciences and technology companies
Zug has developed a significant life sciences and technology sector alongside its trading, holding and crypto clusters. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Demography, space and infrastructure
The canton of Zug is small. Its territory of 239 square kilometres includes lakes, mountains, forests and farmland, and only a limited area is available for building. Read more Zug · Zug 2035The relationship with the European Union
Switzerland's relationship with the European Union frames the environment for all the companies of Zug. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Reputation and legitimacy
Zug's business model depends on the acceptance of its companies by the societies in which they operate and by the Swiss public. That acceptance has been challenged repeatedly. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Taxes on wealth and inheritance
The taxation of wealthy individuals has returned to the political agenda. Switzerland is one of the few developed countries that levies a tax on net wealth. Read more Zug · Zug 2035The United States and Switzerland
The United States is Switzerland's most important trading partner after the European Union and its most important partner in financial services. Many of the multinational groups in Zug are American. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Banking consolidation after Credit Suisse
The collapse of Credit Suisse in March 2023 and its takeover by UBS changed the Swiss banking landscape. Read more Zug · Zug 2035The Swiss franc and the cost base
The strength of the Swiss franc is a permanent feature of the Swiss economy. Having appreciated against the euro and the dollar over the decades, the franc serves as a safe haven in times of crisis. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Climate and the environment
Climate change affects the canton directly and indirectly. The lakes of Zug and Ägeri are warming, the snowfall on the mountains is declining and heat waves are becoming more frequent. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Security and cyber risks
The concentration of valuable companies and wealthy individuals in a small canton creates security risks. Cyber attacks against Swiss companies and authorities have increased in recent years. Read more Zug · Zug 2035The shift in Swiss domestic politics
Swiss domestic politics has shifted in ways that affect the canton's future. The Swiss People's Party, which opposes closer ties with the European Union and favours restrictions on immigration, has… Read more Zug · Zug 2035Artificial intelligence, data and energy demand
Artificial intelligence brings a further, less visible pressure: the demand for data centres and electricity. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Practitioner's note: monitoring the forces of change
Advisers who help clients plan their presence in Zug over a horizon of ten years should monitor the forces described in this chapter systematically. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Four Scenarios for 2035 — conclusion
Four scenarios describe the range of possible futures for Zug in 2035. In the adaptive hub, an open world and continued domestic support allow the canton to evolve from a tax-driven to a… Read more Zug · Zug 2035Why scenarios
Forecasts of economic development over a decade are rarely accurate, as the history of Zug shows. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Scenario 1: The adaptive hub
In the first scenario, the world economy remains broadly open despite tensions, while Swiss voters and the canton's residents continue to support an internationally oriented model. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Scenario 2: The fortress
In the second scenario, the world economy fragments into blocs, but Switzerland and the canton remain open to international business. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Scenario 3: The retreat
In the third scenario, the world economy remains broadly open, but Swiss voters and the canton's residents turn against the internationally oriented model. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Scenario 4: The squeeze
In the fourth scenario, the world economy fragments and Swiss politics turns inward at the same time. Read more Zug · Zug 2035A day in 2035: four vignettes
The scenarios can be made more concrete by imagining a day in the life of the canton in each of them. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Wild cards
Beyond the four scenarios, several events of low probability but high impact, sometimes called wild cards, could change the canton's path. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Probabilities and judgement
Scenario planning does not assign probabilities to scenarios, since its purpose is preparation for several futures. Readers will nonetheless form their own judgements. Read more Zug · Zug 2035What the scenarios mean for residents
The scenarios have different consequences for the different groups of residents. For the international community, the adaptive hub and the fortress offer continued opportunities, while the retreat… Read more Zug · Zug 2035The scenarios in figures
The scenarios can be summarised by illustrative ranges for a few key figures in 2035, which indicate the order of magnitude of the differences between the scenarios. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Scenarios for the commodity traders
The commodity traders deserve a closer look, since they are the most distinctive and the most exposed sector of the canton. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Scenarios for Crypto Valley
The crypto industry faces its own set of possibilities. In the adaptive hub, Crypto Valley becomes a centre of regulated digital asset infrastructure, working closely with Swiss banks and the SIX… Read more Zug · Zug 2035Scenarios for the legal and fiduciary professions
The professional services of Zug, including law firms, fiduciaries, auditors and tax advisers, depend on the international companies and wealthy residents they serve. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Milestones to 2035
Several dated milestones will show which path the canton is taking. The following list is indicative, since the dates of votes and legislative steps are uncertain and may change. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Scenarios for wealthy residents and family offices
The wealthy residents of Zug, whom Part F described, react to the scenarios in their own way. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Indicators to watch
The scenarios suggest a set of indicators that decision-makers can monitor to see which path the canton is taking. Read more Zug · Zug 2035The scenarios and the sectors of Zug
The four scenarios affect the sectors of Zug differently. The commodity traders, the most mobile sector and the most exposed to geopolitics, prosper in the fortress but suffer in the squeeze and the… Read more Zug · Zug 2035A Geneva comparison
The Geneva book in this series also closes with a look ahead. Although Geneva faces some of the same forces, among them the minimum tax, geopolitical fragmentation, the energy transition and the… Read more Zug · Zug 2035Practitioner's note: stress-testing a location decision
Advisers can use the scenarios to stress-test the location decisions of their clients. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Options, Recommendations and Conclusions — conclusion
The canton of Zug has considerable room for manoeuvre in the fields within its control: taxes, housing, infrastructure, education, the administration and courts, integration and culture. Read more Zug · Zug 2035The canton's room for manoeuvre
The canton of Zug controls only some of the forces that will shape its future. International tax rules, sanctions, tariffs, the relationship with the European Union and immigration policy are decided… Read more Zug · Zug 2035Tax strategy after the minimum tax
The minimum tax requires the canton to rethink its tax strategy. For large groups, the effective rate is now fixed at 15 per cent, so that the canton cannot compete by lowering it further. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Housing and space
The shortage of affordable housing is the most pressing domestic problem of the canton and the most likely source of political resistance to its economic model. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Infrastructure and mobility
The canton's transport infrastructure is under strain. The rail connections to Zurich and Lucerne, the motorways and the local roads carry growing traffic. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Education, research and talent
The canton's future depends on its ability to attract and develop talent. It can act in several ways. Read more Zug · Zug 2035English in the institutions
Part J discussed the options for integrating English into the canton's institutions. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Reputation and responsible business
The canton's reputation depends on the conduct of its companies. The canton cannot control that conduct directly, since the regulation of companies and markets is largely federal. Read more Zug · Zug 2035The crypto cluster
Part G and Part H described the development of Crypto Valley and its regulatory framework. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Integration and political participation
The separation between the international community and the local political community, which Part J described, is a long-term risk for the canton. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Fiscal equalisation: a strategy for the canton
The canton's contributions to fiscal equalisation will rise with its revenues from the minimum tax. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Regional cooperation
Zug is part of a larger economic region centred on Zurich and extending to Lucerne, Schwyz and Aargau. Many of its employees live in these cantons, while many of its residents work in Zurich. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Lessons from other small hubs
Other small jurisdictions that have become international business hubs offer lessons for Zug. Read more Zug · Zug 2035A fund for future generations
The canton's surpluses raise the question of how to use them over the long term. The canton has used them for current measures, such as the reduction of health insurance premiums, and for investments… Read more Zug · Zug 2035A note on method and sources
The chapters of this part differ from those of the preceding parts in their method. Read more Zug · Zug 2035The canton's strengths for the decade ahead
The analysis of this book suggests that Zug enters the decade to 2035 with considerable strengths. Read more Zug · Zug 2035The canton's vulnerabilities
The canton's vulnerabilities are equally clear. Its economy depends heavily on a small number of large companies, whose decisions can change its tax revenues and employment within a few years. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Recommendations for companies and advisers
For companies considering a presence in Zug, and for their advisers, the analysis of this book suggests several recommendations. Read more Zug · Zug 2035What advisers should tell their clients now
Advisers who work with clients in Zug face the task of translating the analysis of this book into practical advice. Several messages stand out. Read more Zug · Zug 2035The role of the advisers in the canton's future
The legal, tax and fiduciary professions have shaped the history of Zug as much as its politicians and entrepreneurs. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Practitioner's checklist: a Zug presence for 2035
● * Substance. * Define the functions that the company will perform in Zug, the people who will perform them and the decisions that will be taken there. Read more Zug · Zug 2035Epilogue: The making of a global hub
This book began with a small canton of farmers, fishermen and mercenaries on the shores of a lake in central Switzerland. Read more