The cantonal role in Zug

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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. The commercial register of the canton registers companies and foundations and examines their statutes. It developed a practice early on of accepting crypto-assets as contributions in kind to the share capital of companies, subject to valuation by a licensed auditor.¹ Since the revision of company law in force on 1 January 2023, the share capital of a company may be denominated in a foreign currency that is essential to its business, but crypto-assets are not among the permitted currencies.²

The cantonal tax administration applies federal and cantonal tax law to the crypto industry. It issues rulings on the tax treatment of token sales and publishes year-end rates for the valuation of crypto-assets for wealth tax purposes. The cantonal courts decide civil disputes, including disputes about crypto-assets, while the cantonal public prosecutor's office pursues crimes committed with crypto-assets. The Zug authorities have built specialised expertise in these fields, which reflects the concentration of the industry in the canton.

Notes

Canton of Zug, news release "HR Zug lässt Kryptowährungen als Sacheinlage zu", 4 September 2017, zg.ch: the Zug commercial register accepts cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin in particular, as contributions in kind for the formation of companies; the first such registration was approved by the Federal Commercial Register Office. The audit confirmation follows from the general rule on contributions in kind (Art. 635a CO). ↩
Arts. 621 para. 2 CO and Annex 3 of the Commercial Register Ordinance, in force since 1 January 2023; SGAV, "Aktienrechtsrevision – Überblick über die wichtigsten Änderungen per 1. Januar 2023", sgav.ch: share capital may be denominated in the permitted foreign currencies (euro, yen, US dollar, British pound) if essential to the business. ↩

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

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The cantonal role in Zug

Notes

Setting up or expanding in Switzerland?