Nestled amidst the majestic Alps, Switzerland is renowned for its pristine landscapes, legendary chocolates, and precision-engineered watches.
But beyond the snow-clad peaks and serene lakes, the country hides another gem: the world’s largest group of billionaires who’ve built empires in diverse sectors ranging from pharmaceuticals to shipping.
Below are currently the richest 25 billionaires in Switzerland and some of their achievements and companies.
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- Rafaela Aponte-Diamant
- Worth: $31.3 billion
- Company: MSC (Mediterranean Shipping Company)
- Achievements: Co-founders of the world’s second-largest shipping container company.
- Gianluigi Aponte:
- Worth: $31.3 billion
- Company: MSC (Mediterranean Shipping Company)
- Achievements: Co-founder of the world’s second-largest shipping container company.
- Ernesto Bertarelli:
- Worth: $9.5 billion
- Company: Serono, a biotech company
- Achievements: Expanded Serono before its $13.3B sale in 2007; winner of America’s Cup twice with his sailing team.
- Ivan Glasenberg:
- Worth: $9.5 billion
- Company: Glencore
- Achievements: Former CEO of Glencore, one of the world’s largest commodity trading and mining companies.
- Guillaume Pousaz:
- Worth: $7.2 billion
- Company: Checkout.com
- Achievements: Founder and CEO of payment processing company Checkout.com
- Magdalena Martullo-Blocher
- Worth: $7.1 billion
- Company: EMS-Chemie
- Achievements: Daughters of Swiss billionaire Christoph Blocher; Magdalena serves as the CEO of EMS-Chemie.
- Rahel Blocher:
- Worth: $7.1 billion
- Company: Robinvest
- Achievements: Daughter of Swiss billionaire Christoph Blocher; Rahel serves as the head of Robinvest and sits on the board of her father’s foundation Schweizer Musikinsel Rheinau Foundation.
- Thomas Schmidheiny:
- Worth: $5.9 billion
- Company: LafargeHolcim
- Achievements: Heir to a Swiss construction materials dynasty and major shareholder in LafargeHolcim. He also owns various wineries around the world
- Thomas Straumann:
- Worth: $5.6 billion
- Company: Straumann Holding
- Achievements: Heir and large shareholder to the dental implant company Straumann. He also chairs Medartis.
- Rudolf Maag:
- Worth: $5.5 billion
- Company: Synthes
- Achievements: He has had a variety of successes in medical devices having been part of Straumann and buying part of that company. It was later merged and sold to Johnson and Johnson
- Dona Bertarelli:
- Worth: $5.1 billion
- Company: Serono
- Achievements: Heir, and former co-owner of biotech company Serono. She is now an accomplished sailor and heavily involved in marine conservation.
- Martin Haefner:
- Worth: $5.1 billion
- Company: AMAG Group
- Achievements: Former co-owner of CA Technologies. Currently majority owner of car import firm AMAG Group. He also co-owns the Bellerive Hotel in Lausanne.
- Michael Pieper:
- Worth: $4.8 billion
- Company: Franke Group
- Achievements: Heir, and current owner and president of the kitchen equipment and coffee machine producer Franke. He is also on the board of Forbo and Autoneum.
- Hansjoerg Wyss:
- Worth: $4.8 billion
- Company: Synthes
- Achievements: Sold his medical device company Synthes to Johnson & Johnson for $20 billion. He is also a well-known philanthropist involved with both Harvard and environmental causes.
- Peter Grogg:
- Worth: $4.4 billion
- Company: Bachem.
- Achievements: Various achievements in the pharma and biotech sectors.
- Peter Spuhler:
- Worth: $4.2 billion
- Company: Stadler Rail
- Achievements: CEO of train manufacturer Stadler Rail.
- Margarita Louis-Dreyfus & family:
- Worth: $3.6 billion
- Company: Louis Dreyfus Company
- Achievements: Chairwoman of global trader in agricultural goods.
- Hans Peter Wild:
- Worth: $3.4 billion
- Company: Capri Sun
- Achievements: Owner of the Capri Sun juice drink brand.
- Walter Frey:
- Worth: $3.4 billion
- Company: Emil Frey Group
- Achievements: Automotive industry achievements with Emil Frey Group.
- Willy Michel:
- Worth: $3.3 billion
- Company: Ypsomed
- Achievements: Founder of medical device company Ypsomed.
- Maja Oeri:
- Worth: $3.1 billion
- Company: Roche Holding
- Achievements: Heiress to the Roche pharmaceutical fortune; patron of the arts.
- Markus Blocher:
- Worth: $3.1 billion
- Company: Ems-Chemie, Dottikon
- Achievements: Sold his inheritance of EMS-Chemie and started Dottikon.
- Martin Ebner:
- Worth: $3.1 billion
- Company: BZ Bank
- Achievements: Banker and majority owner of BZ Bank. His investment company has stakes in various successful companies like Vifor Pharma, Temenos and Intershop
- Eva Maria Bucher-Haefner:
- Worth: $3 billion
- Company: Computer Associates
- Achievements: Heiress to Walter Haefner’s fortune from software firm Computer Associates.
- Miriam Baumann-Blocher:
- Worth: $2.5 billion
- Company: EMS-Chemie
- Achievements: Daughter of Swiss billionaire Christoph Blocher; Formerly involved in the family company EMS-Chemie. Now owns Läckerli-Huus a baked goods company.