Swiss Biotech has announced that Switzerland is an ideal global destination for investment in biotechnology in view of the country's well-established Research and Development infrastructure, availability of highly qualified specialists, adequate finance and amenable tax laws.
In its annual report for 2006, Swiss Biotech has presented data to show that the performance of Switzerland's biotechnology industry has been impressive. Following are the highlights of the Swiss Biotech Report 2006.
• Switzerland has held the leading position in biotech density, i.e. biotech companies per capita
• In absolute numbers of biotech companies, the country has consistently been ranked sixth in Europe and in the top ten worldwide.
• Switzerland ranked second in Europe in terms of revenue and market capitalization
• Roughly 15,000 employees in Switzerland's biotech sector created a turnover of almost $6 billion in 2005
• Approximately $1.1 billion have been invested into R&D in 2005
• A constantly increasing influx of investment (over $200 million in 2005) has established Swiss biotech among the top three destinations for venture capital in Europe.
Favorable business and tax conditions for biotech and the success stories of global industry leaders like Serono or Actelion, SMEs like Prionics and numerous start-ups such as Glycart, have turned Switzerland into a veritable biotech haven.
Says Alice Huxley, CEO of Speedel: “Switzerland is an excellent location for any entrepreneur looking to build a successful biotech business.” Companies such as Isolagen, Biogen Idec or Amgen have relocated their headquarters to Switzerland and helped establish the country as a hotbed for biotech and life sciences along the lines of prime industry locations like Massachusetts and California.

Symbiosis of scientific excellence, tech transfer and access to finance



According to the Swiss Biotech Report 2006, Switzerland has been able to create a symbiotic biotech environment that successfully combines three critical areas of the biotech business:
• Leading edge scientific expertise of prestigious universities (e.g. the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, ETH Zürich) and highly-skilled specialists
• High degree of cooperation and technology transfer between academic institutes and private sector R&D labs (e.g. through the nationwide “SystemsX” initiative and the advanced Swiss biotech network featuring over 40 science parks)
• Proximity to the Swiss financial industry (e.g. SWX Swiss Exchange, over 40 VC and private equity funds, and various incubators)
The financial sector is an especially strong pillar of the Swiss biotech symbiosis. The SWX Swiss Exchange has Europe's highest biotech capitalization and is the continent's most international marketplace. More than a quarter of the world's moveable assets are managed by Swiss financial institutions, many of which are located in Zürich and Geneva. The worldwide significance of the Swiss financial centre and its long tradition in life science investments constitute the basis for Switzerland's status as one of Europe's prime IPO locations for biotech companies. With its provision of ready access to risk capital and private equity, Switzerland is also a promising pre-IPO environment, offering start-ups and spin-offs excellent growth conditions.
The Swiss Biotech label was created in order to bolster the Swiss biotech scene at home and abroad and to ensure a uniform image. Swiss Biotech is a consortium of the Swiss biotech regions Bioalps, Biopolo, BioValley Basel and the Greater Zurich Area / Zurich MedNet. Further members of this marketing alliance are SWX Swiss Exchange and the Swiss Biotech Association.


The Greater Zurich Area AG, a nonprofit organization, is the marketing association for the Greater Zurich Area business region. It recruits international companies abroad and assists them with setting up companies and making investments in the Greater Zurich Area. Its sponsor is the “Stiftung Greater Zurich Area Standortmarketing,” a public-private partnership that was established in November 1998. Since that time, its membership has grown to include the cantons of Aargau, Glarus, Graubünden, Schaffhausen, Schwyz, Solothurn and Zürich, the cities of Zürich and Winterthur, and several businesses.