“The volume of takeovers targeting Swiss companies has jumped 465% to $16.7 billion so far this year” according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Switzerland, best known for its global champions like Nestlé, Glencore or UBS, has over this year 2025 become the focus of a new kind of attention: mergers and acquisitions. But why Switzerland, and why now? What is it about its companies and its markets that makes them so attractive to foreign buyers? And more importantly, what could this wave of takeovers mean for Switzerland’s future?

Why Switzerland?

The boom is driven in the first place by foreign capital inflows. Switzerland’s openness to investment sets it apart from the tighter restrictions in other European markets. This absence  of rigid barriers has allowed international firms to pursue acquisitions with relative ease, as we can see through the surge of inbound deals. As Vincent Thiebaud, head of Swiss investment banking at Jefferies Financial Group Inc., put it: “There is a high interest in Switzerland’s mid-cap players that run cost efficiently, but may not have a globally critical size.” This shows that foreign buyers are looking for profitable, well-run, and frequently family-owned mid-sized businesses that are successful in specialized markets but don’t have the resources to grow internationally on their own. Because they can be scaled globally and integrated into larger platforms, they are perfect targets for buyers, transforming local champions into global rivals.

Actors leading to this boom of M&A in Switzerland

The Swiss M&A landscape is also being reshaped by the expansion of private equity funds, backed by abundant capital and now seizing opportunities created by Switzerland’s mid-cap strength and investor-friendly framework.

A clear example is Advent’s recent acquisition announcement of U-Blox, a Swiss chipmaker, for around 1.05 billion CHF (≈ 1.3 billion USD). “The 135 Swiss francs per share offer represents a 53% premium to the undisturbed volume-weighted average share price of the last six months, Advent said in a statement with U-Blox” as Reuters highlighted. The deal illustrates how international investors view Swiss technology-driven firms as both undervalued and highly efficient.

But Advent’s field of interest is not limited to technology. The U.S. private equity group has also backed “Dufry, the world’s largest airport retailer, in 2020, in its $311 million bid to buy the shares it did not already own in Hudson Group, a U.S. travel retailer”  as reported by Forbes. 

This shows that private equity interests extends beyond technology to sectors such as luxury goods and consumer-oriented industries.  These headline transactions illustrate a broader trend. As PwC notes, “The Swiss private equity (PE) market has grown steadily in recent years, with investments across a wide range of industries and company sizes. The diversity of the market is supported by the flexibility of Swiss law, which allows PE sponsors to acquire both majority and minority stakes, the latter often protected by special shareholder agreements”. However, PWC also adds that “ current global issues are particularly relevant in a smaller market such as Switzerland, contributing to uncertainty in the short-term outlook. Nevertheless, there is optimism for 2025, with several potential exits on the horizon.”

Macro pressures conducive to restructuring

Indeed “Switzerland’s wave of dealmaking comes against a backdrop of macroeconomic challenges. Swiss companies are now facing a potential hit to revenues after the US unexpectedly imposed up to 39% tariff on imports from the country” (Yahoo Finance)— the highest tariff applied to any developed economy. This measure has made Swiss goods far more expensive in a critical market, forcing firms of all sizes to rethink their strategies. In order to get around the tariff, certain Swiss firms are considering branching into alternative markets, moving production closer to the United States, or even pursuing acquisitions of American businesses.  In this sense, the measure has encouraged more businesses to turn to cross-border acquisitions as a defensive tool. Holcim offers a telling example of how Swiss champions respond to such pressures. In 2025, it spun off its North American division under the name Amrize, freeing the parent group to focus resources on global growth and sustainable solutions.

What does it mean for Switzerland?

While some Swiss companies look abroad to secure their future, the country is simultaneously attracting record levels of inbound deals. This wave of takeovers is strengthening Switzerland’s status as a major European financial hub. For mid-cap firms, it enables growth and internationalization. For big Swiss companies, it shows that M&A is not just about growing bigger, but also about staying resilient and adapting.

Switzerland’s M&A boom is a turning point, and whether this momentum proves lasting will depend on whether Switzerland can find the right balance between seizing opportunities and avoiding dependence.

Sources :

Reuters Staff. (2025, August 17). Private equity group Advent to acquire U-Blox for $1.3 billion. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/private-equity-group-advent-acquire-u-blox-13-billion-2025-08-17/

Rozario, K. (2020, September 11). Private Equity Firm Advent Backs Travel Retailer Dufry In Hudson Ambitions. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/kevinrozario/2020/09/11/private-equity-firm-advent-backs-travel-retailer-dufry-in-hudson-ambitions/

PricewaterhouseCoopers. (2025). Swiss M&A trends in Private Capital | PwC Switzerland. PwC. https://www.pwc.ch/en/insights/strategy/m-and-a-trends-private-capital-2025-outlook.html

Revill, J. (2025, June 23). Cement maker Holcim completes $30 billion North American spin-off. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/business/holcim-completes-spin-off-north-american-business-2025-06-23/

Catelli, A. (2025, August 18). Switzerland’s M&A Deal Surge Leaves Rest of Europe Behind. Yahoo Finance. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/switzerland-m-deal-surge-leaves-143003824.html?utm

Short. (2025). 🍋 Swiss M&A Market Booming. Short Squeez. https://www.shortsqueez.co/p/swiss-m-a-market-booming