Company Setup in Switzerland and Corporate Bank Accounts
Company setup in Switzerland is precise and quick when the file is right. The harder part for a trading group is a Swiss bank that will accept it. We prepare the company and the bank relationship as one project.
About Switzerland as a center for commodity trade
Switzerland is one of the world’s main centers for commodity trading, with Geneva, Zug and Lugano home to many of the largest traders in energy, metals and agricultural goods. It also hosts several of the world’s largest gold refineries, which puts it at the center of the physical gold trade.
Its appeal is stability: a strong currency, an independent central bank, predictable courts and tax rates set canton by canton. It sits outside the European Union, but its agreements give it close access to the EU market.
The rules around ownership and precious metals have been tightening. Commercial trading in banking-grade precious metals has required a license since 2023. On 1 October 2026 a federal transparency register for beneficial owners came into force, and existing companies must report to it in the first months of 2027.
Profit tax by canton
Combined federal and cantonal profit tax ranges from roughly 12% in low-tax cantons to about 21% in the highest.
Swiss VAT at 8.1%
The standard rate since January 2024, with registration once worldwide taxable turnover reaches CHF 100,000 a year.
Share capital required
CHF 20,000 fully paid in for a GmbH, and CHF 100,000 for an AG, of which at least half must be paid in.
Swiss franc stability
A strong, independent currency that many trading groups use alongside the dollar and the euro.
Company setup in Switzerland: GmbH or AG
Company setup in Switzerland usually means a GmbH, the limited liability company, or an AG, the joint stock company. Both are formed before a notary in the canton where the company will sit, and both gain legal existence only when entered in the commercial register.
Capital paid in first
Share capital is paid into a blocked account at a Swiss bank, which releases it once the company is registered.
A Swiss resident signatory
At least one person living in Switzerland must be able to represent the company, alone or jointly with another resident.
Notarized deed and register
The founding deed is signed before a cantonal notary, then filed with the commercial register for entry.
Transparency register filing
New and existing companies report their beneficial owners, those with 25% or more, to the federal register.
The blocked capital account means the bank is involved before the company even exists. For a foreign-owned trading company, that first bank conversation sets the tone for everything after it, so we prepare it as carefully as the account itself.
We arrange the formation through Company Formation and Market Entry. When the Swiss company will trade for a group held in the UAE or Hong Kong, Holding Companies and SPVs covers how ownership and management should be arranged.
Bank account opening in Switzerland
Swiss banks are selective by design. Commodity trading, precious metals and cross-border payments all sit on their enhanced due diligence lists, and a bank will also ask whether the relationship is worth its compliance cost. Opening can take weeks or months, and higher-risk accounts often carry significant annual fees.
This is where our work matters most. We map the trade, build the evidence a Swiss compliance team will ask for, write the compliance policy that sits behind it, and approach the banks whose appetite fits that profile. No Swiss bank’s decision can be promised by anyone outside it. What we control is the quality of the file it decides on.
Corporate Banking and Account Opening Support covers the application, and Trade Finance Advisory covers the facilities a Swiss trading company usually needs once the account is open.
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01
Visible Swiss substance
An office, staff or local advisors, a corporate website and email, rather than a name plate on a shared address.
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02
Payment flows mapped
Expected amounts, currencies, counterparties and countries, with major contracts available to support them.
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03
Source of wealth and funds
Where the owners’ wealth comes from, and where the company’s capital and first payments come from.
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04
A written compliance approach
A short policy showing how the company screens counterparties and sanctions, sized to its trade.
Company setup in Switzerland: common questions
A GmbH needs CHF 20,000 of capital and suits smaller or closely held companies. An AG needs CHF 100,000, at least half paid in, and suits larger companies or those planning outside investors.
With a complete file, formation itself is usually quick, since name checks, notarization and registration are well organized. The blocked capital account and bank due diligence are where most time is lost.
A federal register of beneficial owners in force since 1 October 2026. Companies report anyone holding 25% or more. Existing companies have deadlines between January and April 2027, and intentional breaches can be fined.