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SWISS BUSINESS NEWS

 

 

FALL 2007

 

 

Top of the News

 

On September 20, Autodesk, CEMEX, Electronic Arts, Kyphon and Microsoft received from Swiss Ambassador to the U.S. Urs Ziswiler Tell Awards for Switzerland’s most significant inward investment projects by North American firms in 2006. The awards are named for the Swiss legendary hero William Tell. Winners become the newest members of the Tell Society, which already includes Celgene Corp., eBay, Google, Procter & Gamble, Amgen, Stryker Corporation, IBM and Verisign.

 

 

Wins and Updates

 

Ashburn, Virginia based Brainware, Inc., opened a new office for EMEA operations in Neuchatel.  The company is a leader in the high speed document capture market, which is expected to double in size in the next few years. Current staffing in Switzerland is expected to reach 30.

 

Virginia based DeltaGee has established its European R&D and IP operations in Biel, Switzerland.  The young firm, founded in 2001, already has 17 patents and others pending in various areas designed to improve the efficiency of motors and the reduction of exhaust emissions.  The project is expected to generate up to 70 new jobs over the next several years and a multi-million dollar investment.

 

California search engine company Yahoo! announced that it will be establishing its European Data Center in Avenches, Canton Vaud. Yahoo will purchase a Greenfield site measuring thirty-six thousand square meters for a reported 4.8 million SFr.  Upon completion, the data center is expected to employ a few dozen persons.

 

Florida-based American Radiologist Network Inc. (AMRADNET), a provider of radiological, cardio-care and critical health information services, has acquired Zurich-based ViewTec AG, a spin-off from the University of Zurich. ViewTec's core business covers the fields of virtual reality, 3D computer graphics, medical imaging and visualization.

AGCO Corporation, based in Duluth, GA and a worldwide manufacturer and distributor of agricultural equipment, is opening its European headquarters in Schaffhausen.  The new facility will focus on AGCO activities in Europe, Africa, the Middle East and East Asia Pacific regions.

Lazard Ltd. has opened its first office in Switzerland as part of its push to expand its European financial-advisory business. Lazard said the launch of the office in Zurich will allow it to "expand our financial advisory services to the Swiss market, where we already have established corporate relationships."

California-based Macrovision Corporation, a company designing copyright protection and video scrambling technologies, has opened a new regional technical and sales office in Fribourg headed by Swiss Finance Director Pierpaolo Boschetti. Macrovision expects to create 40 new jobs at the facility by 2012.

DST International, a subsidiary of Missouri-based DST Systems Inc, a provider of software and business process management solutions to the investment management industry, will open a subsidiary in Zurich by year end 2007. Headquartered in Kansas City, DST is a publicly traded company that employs 9000 associates worldwide.

 

Tiger Global Management, a New York based investment company, reportedly bought a majority interest in Jobs.ch, a Swiss online employment company.

 

 

Reverse Investments

 

Galenica Group, one of the leading Swiss pharmaceutical and logistics providers, announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Aspreva Pharmaceuticals, a Victoria, BC-based pharmaceutical research and development company.  Reportedly the deal is valued at USD 915 million.  The deal is still subject to shareholders and Canadian competition authority approvals.

 

Swiss pharma giant Roche will purchase Madison, Wisconsin-based NimbleGen for a reported $273 million in an attempt to build its position in the genomics research market.  NimbleGen was founded in late 1999 with technology licensed from the University of Wisconsin and today has 140 employees.

 

Swiss electrical engineering group Von Roll Holdings AG acquired New Jersey-based John C. Dolph Company.  Dolph has last year sales of $13 million in resins and varnishes for the electrical insulation industry.

 

Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Radius Health Inc. has entered into a strategic alliance with Novartis to develop and market a Phase 2 osteoporosis drug candidate.  Rights would include all markets other than Japan and could bring the company up to an estimated $500 million.

 

 

From The Foreign Desk

 

 

German pharma wholesaler Phoenix Pharmahandel AG has reportedly acquired a majority stake in Swiss sector company Amedis Holding AG based in Basel.  Phoenix is active in 19 European countries and is the second largest wholesaler/distributor of pharmaceuticals on the Continent.

 

 

Designerdock, the largest communications employment agency in German-speaking Europe, has opened a subsidiary in Zurich.  The parent firm was founded in Berlin ten years ago and today has a staff of 20 employees throughout Europe.

 

Nissan Europe has announced the relocation of its European headquarters from the Paris region to Rolle in the canton of Vaud, Approximately 100 executives will be involved in the transfer, which should begin early 2008.

 

Ray Sono, a provider of Internet-based solutions for electronic business processes headquartered in Germany, has decided to open a subsidiary in Zurich. Cited as reasons for the move were infrastructure, public transport, tax benefits, social and cultural life, educational resources and technology transfer, and the availability of well trained employees.

 

 

The Swiss branch of French bank Credit Agricole SA is to expand its logistics center in Vennes, north of Lausanne, with the construction of a new building worth 20 million Swiss francs. Currently employing about 300, the bank expects to add 200 additional jobs at the site by 2009.

 

Sydney, Australia-based company Phoenix Global has opened an office in Zug. The company provides risk management and investigative solutions.

 

Also in Zug, Bermuda-based Montpelier Re Holdings Ltd, a provider of global property and casualty insurance and reinsurance products, started operations in September to direct their activities in Europe and the Middle East.

 

The State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR), one of the largest oil companies in the world, announced that it will create a representative office in Geneva

 

Paris-based international shipbroker Barry Rogliano Salles (BRS) has opened up a new office in Geneva “to serve the growing number of shipowners, oil companies and traders located there.” BRS will initially focus its efforts to Tanker Chartering and Newbuilding Projects with a team of four brokers.

 

 

Other News

 

 

Andre Guedel, who has been with Location: Switzerland since 1998 most recently as Director of the organization’s operations in North America, will leave at the end of November to take up a new position with CITCO Corporate Services in Geneva.  We wish Andre well in his new career and gratefully acknowledge his many contributions to the growing success of the LS program.  Effective January 2008, LS will be merged with OSEC, the Swiss export agency which operates overseas under the logo Swiss Business Network Switzerland.

 

 

The World Economic Forum’s 2007-08 Global Competitiveness Report ranks Switzerland 2nd after the United States among 131 of the world’s most competitive economies.  Switzerland is credited with an excellent capacity for innovation, a sophisticated business culture, outstanding scientific research institutions and strong intellectual property protection.

 

The Economic Freedom of the World Index, published by the Canada based Fraser Institute, ranks Switzerland as the “freest” economy in Europe in 2007.  Hong Kong, Singapore and New Zealand lead the rankings of the 141 countries assessed based upon a market basked of 42 different criteria.  For more info, see www.fraserinstitute.ca.

 

 

The Travel Section of the Sunday New York Times of September 16th had a glowing article on Geneva on its traditional 36 Hours page.

 

 

 

Publicity and Promotion

 

September 17 – Switzerland announces winners of significant investment projects for 2006

 

October 10 – CHS Inc. establishes EMEA Headquarters in Switzerland

 

October 24 – Diebold Establishes EMEA Headquarters in Switzerland

 

 

 

News from Location Promotion Switzerland