SPHERE Editorial

"VC funds are increasingly adopting structured approaches inspired by private equity".

Michael Sidler — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 10:35:57 GMT

Between concentration of capital, sophistication of processes and increased pressure on performance, venture capital is changing in scale and nature. For Michael Sidler, co-founder of Redalpine, this transformation does not signal a break with the past, but a rise to maturity in which rigor, selection and support are becoming more decisive than ever.

What structural changes do you see shaping the venture capital landscape over the next few years?
Two major developments stand out on a global scale. The first is the rise of what is sometimes referred to as the "Big VC". Multi-billion-dollar funds are investing considerable sums in a limited number of technology companies, often alongside governments and large corporations. This gives rise to powerful ecosystems built around critical technologies.
This dynamic can be seen in players such as SpaceX and OpenAI. Governments increasingly regard certain technologies as strategic assets. They therefore support the associated ecosystems through public policies. For venture capitalists, this creates exceptional opportunities, but also introduces a form of political dependency.
The second transformation concerns artificial intelligence, not only as an investment theme, but also as a technology that redefines the venture capital process itself. AI makes it possible to analyze thousands of opportunities and identify promising ones. Yet venture capital remains fundamentally a human activity. Assessing founders and supporting entrepreneurs still relies on human interaction.

How have investors' perceptions of venture capital changed in the current context of interest rates and liquidity?
Venture capital works in cycles. Between 2013 and 2022, the market experienced a long expansion phase, marked by rising valuations and the arrival of numerous funds. Many investors had never experienced a downturn before.
When interest rates rose and valuations corrected, some recorded losses for the first time. Sentiment then reversed sharply. Today, we're not seeing a retreat from venture capital, but rather a clear "flight to quality". Investors are still active, but they are much more selective, preferring management teams with a solid track record.

What distinguishes venture capital from private equity in terms of investment approach, time horizon and value creation?
These are two fundamentally different asset classes. Private equity typically acquires majority stakes in established companies, often from other shareholders, then restructures operations and optimizes operational efficiency before selling its stake.
Venture capitalists, on the other hand, are minority shareholders who typically hold between 10% and 20% of the capital. The funds injected are used to finance the company's growth directly, rather than to buy existing shares.
The aim is to support talented founders and strengthen their capabilities. If the founders aren't up to the task, we don't invest. In this sense, venture capital is about creating new companies and new industries, while private equity is about improving and developing existing companies.

Do you see convergences emerging between venture capital and private equity?
I can think of a few. The first concerns exits. Some venture capital-backed companies are bought out by private equity funds once they reach a certain size. This is a natural exit route.
Another convergence concerns value creation. VC funds are increasingly adopting structured approaches inspired by private equity. At Redalpine, for example, we support founders in recruitment strategies, organization structuring, sales execution, international expansion and subsequent fund-raising. These methods enable young companies to professionalize more rapidly. Despite these commonalities, the two models remain profoundly distinct.

How are VC funds adapting their strategies in the face of longer exit cycles and more selective financing conditions?
There is a perception that exits have become extremely difficult, but the reality is more nuanced. If we neutralize the exceptional effects of the covid period, exit activity in Europe is actually close to a ten-year high.
In our own portfolio, we continue to see a healthy number of exits. The talk of an exits "drought" mainly reflects the experience of funds that entered the market during the euphoric years and never experienced a correction. In reality, the market is simply returning to a more normal environment.

What is the current state of the venture capital market in Switzerland, and how does it compare with the major innovation hubs?
In terms of innovation, Switzerland has developed an exceptionally solid ecosystem, notably around ETH Zurich and EPFL. The quality of technological innovation is very high. The main challenge lies in financing. Much of the capital invested in Swiss startups comes from international investors, particularly from the USA. While this testifies to the attractiveness of Swiss innovation, it also means that a significant proportion of the financial returns go abroad.
Europe's structural weakness lies above all in growth capital. Early-stage financing has improved significantly over the past two decades, but the gap with the USA remains wide when companies reach an advanced stage of development.

Which sectors or technologies are attracting the most attention from investors in Switzerland and Europe?
Much of Switzerland's innovation comes from ETH Zurich and EPFL, which explains the dynamism in fields such as robotics, drones, artificial intelligence and deep tech.
Other sectors of growing interest include fintech, synthetic biology, biotechnology and advanced materials. Overall, Switzerland and Europe today stand out as particularly strong high-tech ecosystems.

In the future, what will differentiate successful venture capital players from those who run into difficulties?
One major mistake is to specialize excessively in a single sector. Investment themes come in waves - crypto, foodtech, ESG or defense technologies. Focusing exclusively on one theme exposes the whole portfolio to these cycles. At Redalpine, we take a generalist, diversified approach across several technology waves.
Another key factor is the composition of our investment teams. Nearly half of our staff are scientists, which enables us to gain an in-depth understanding of complex technologies and to dialogue with founders on an equal footing.
Finally, success is increasingly based on discipline and process. We analyze more than 5,000 dossiers a year, and then select just ten or so. Identifying the few companies that generate the greatest returns requires an extremely rigorous approach.

Is venture capital becoming the new private equity in terms of maturity, discipline and value creation?
Discipline has always been essential in venture capital, even if public perception sometimes suggests otherwise. In this asset class, the majority of returns come from one or two exceptional companies. The challenge is to identify these "outliers" and support them in realizing their full potential.
Venture capital has become more professional and structured over time. But its fundamental mission remains different from that of private equity. It's about building the next generation of companies, not restructuring existing ones.

Are evergreen structures and secondary markets transforming the venture capital model?
Yes, potentially, significantly. Traditional venture capital is based on closed funds with long lock-up periods, capital calls and the famous J-curve effect. For many investors, particularly private ones, this structure is difficult to access and not compatible with holding funds via a traditional bank account.
At Redalpine, we have developed an evergreen platform, the Summit Fund, which invests both in our early stage funds and directly in more mature companies in our portfolio or in the ecosystem.
The advantage lies in its flexibility. Investors can access venture capital without committing to a rigid ten-year structure, while we can continuously reinvest and support our best holdings. At the same time, the development of secondary markets could bring more liquidity to this asset class.

"Players who don't differentiate themselves are gradually being squeezed out".

Philippe Bucher — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 10:04:23 GMT

Resilient but under pressure, the Swiss private equity market is entering a phase of recomposition. Between an influx of capital, increased competition and rising operational demands, Philippe Bucher deciphers the new equilibrium in a sector where only those players capable of differentiating themselves will continue to come out on top.

How would you describe the current state of the private equity market in Switzerland?
From an investment point of view, the market remains remarkably resilient. Competition is strong, and deal flow is holding up well. In 2025, activity was clearly higher than in 2024, both in terms of number of transactions and volumes, although the market has not yet fully recovered to pre-pandemic levels. The highlight of the year was intra-annual volatility, with a very dynamic first quarter, a more cautious second quarter, and then a further acceleration at the end of the year.

Certain sectors proved particularly active. These included healthcare and medtech, infrastructure and data centers, as well as tech and AI. Transactions aside, Switzerland continues to benefit from very solid fundamentals. It benefits from a dense fabric of SMEs, political and economic stability, a predictable regulatory and tax environment, low inflation and, more recently, a favorable interest rate environment following the cuts decided by the SNB.

What do you see as the main dynamics shaping the Swiss private equity market today?
One of the most important drivers is certainly corporate transformation. Many industrial groups are rationalizing their portfolios through carve-outs and disposals of non-strategic assets. This creates recurring opportunities for private equity investors. Switzerland also remains attractive to international players, who see it more as a platform for raising capital than simply as an investment destination.

At the same time, the macroeconomic environment remains uncertain, weakened by geopolitical tensions, persistent conflicts, high public deficits and the reshaping of trade patterns. Questions also remain as to the sustainability of the current enthusiasm for AI-related investments. All these factors are influencing investor behavior, and reinforcing their interest in resilient, high-quality companies.

Valuation levels remain high. Why hasn't price pressure adjusted more?
Several factors explain why valuations remain high. Firstly, the amount of dry powder available remains high. Large capital reserves are competing for a limited number of quality assets, which naturally supports prices. In an uncertain environment, buyers are highly selective, concentrating on premium, resilient companies that continue to trade at high multiples. The relatively low cost of debt in Switzerland is also helping to support valuation levels by preserving leverage conditions.

Finally, an anchoring effect persists. Many sellers, general partners and limited partners continue to refer to pre-pandemic valuation levels, and remain reluctant to accept significant revaluation until visibility on exits improves.

How do you see consolidation among Swiss private equity players evolving?
Consolidation is clearly gathering pace, and is set to continue. The major international private equity firms are strengthening their presence in Switzerland and are showing a willingness to deploy capital in smaller amounts than before. This is putting pressure on smaller domestic players. What's more, some local houses are finding it hard to secure commitments for their new funds when they do not have a differentiating positioning. Increasingly stringent regulatory and operational constraints require critical mass and greater sophistication to remain competitive. Against this backdrop, players who fail to differentiate themselves are gradually being squeezed out. Conversely, specialized boutiques with a clear value proposition can still thrive.

What are the key success factors for Swiss private equity boutiques in such a competitive environment?
Differentiation is absolutely essential. Swiss boutiques need to demonstrate in-depth sector or regional expertise, as well as a genuine ability to create operational value within portfolio companies. Strong local networks are a major asset, particularly for identifying proprietary operations and building trust with entrepreneurs. Flexibility and creativity are also crucial. Openness to co-investments, minority stakes or tailor-made financing solutions can make all the difference to large funds with more rigid investment models. Ultimately, smaller players need to compensate for their size with superior performance and a more operational approach.

What are the main challenges currently facing Swiss private equity boutiques, both structurally and strategically?
One of the main challenges is the intensification of competition, both from international funds and domestic players. Exit difficulties are another challenge, as capital markets and M&A activity remain relatively sluggish. In addition, operating costs have risen sharply. Even small funds now have to meet stringent requirements in terms of governance, compliance, reporting and institutionalization. This raises the minimum size threshold needed to operate effectively, and puts pressure on margins, particularly for new managers or smaller structures.

Where are the most attractive opportunities for Swiss private equity boutiques today?
They are generally to be found in well-defined niches that benefit from structural growth drivers. These include healthcare and medtech, certain software and tech segments, and service companies with regional roots. Succession situations within Swiss SMEs also represent a very attractive opportunity, given the age of many managers. In addition, private credit structures are becoming increasingly attractive, particularly in areas where traditional bank financing is being withdrawn. These segments still allow smaller, specialized players to maintain a distinctive edge.

Given the limited size of the Swiss market, is it still possible to focus on specific sectors, or is diversification becoming a necessity?
In my view, diversification should take place at investor level, not at private equity boutique level. In a market like Switzerland, focus and specialization are major competitive advantages. Trying to cover too many sectors risks diluting expertise and credibility. Clearly defined positioning enables better sourcing, deeper operational understanding and more consistent value creation. Investors can then diversify their exposure by allocating their capital to several specialized managers.

How would you personally define success in private equity, beyond financial performance?
Beyond financial indicators such as IRRs and multiples, success is about creating long-term, sustainable value. This implies a tangible operational impact within portfolio companies, the development of companies capable of weathering cycles, and a positive contribution to the transformation of sectors and economies.

How can Swiss private equity boutiques cope with the growing competition from large international asset managers entering the Swiss market?
In practice, competition with large international managers is often less direct than it might seem. Targets, sectors and transaction sizes do not always overlap. Swiss boutiques can remain highly relevant by focusing on transactions that are too small, too local or too complex to be handled effectively by large funds. Deep local roots, close relationships with entrepreneurs and a highly operational investment approach remain powerful differentiating factors.

"Banks need to change their mindset to Reason Customer."

Dorothée Borca Dumortier — Sat, 28 Mar 2026 09:00:00 GMT

The digitalization of the Swiss financial sector, which is lagging far behind, also depends on banks' ability to rethink their culture and priorities. For Dorothée Borca Dumortier, they need to learn how to streamline customer paths and build coherent, transparent and frictionless digital experiences. In an environment where speed, personalization and data are redefining the rules of the game, they now need to combine technological agility with relational intelligence.

In Deloitte's recent global ranking on digital and banking, Switzerland dropped to 27th place. How do you explain this alarming drop?
This ranking reflects a reality: Switzerland may excel in the areas of security and compliance, but it has been slow to invest in user experience and technological agility. Yet the stakes are colossal. Between now and 2048, some 85,000 billion dollars will be transferred between generations. The heirs to these fortunes have radically different expectations when it comes to the digital experience. Banks and financial institutions that don't transform now simply risk missing the boat.

To what extent is the legacy of core banking systems holding back the digitization of financial services in Switzerland?
It's holding back considerably, but not insurmountably. The real problem isn't technical - in my opinion, it's more cultural and organizational. Banks need to change their mindset to "think customer", constantly seeking to remove any friction in the customer journey, without letting themselves be limited by technical constraints. Many Swiss banks still lack a fully digitized end-to-end process for opening accounts, losing customers during the entire onboarding cycle. Too many institutions seem to be waiting for the perfect solution, rather than adopting a modular approach. At IG, we've made the opposite choice: favoring progress over perfection, with an open architecture supporting sophisticated APIs, multiple protocols such as FIX or Bloomberg EMSX, and progressive integration that enables real-time solutions. Legacy is circumvented by agility and a pragmatic approach focused on the user experience.

What distinguishes today's digital champions in financial services, and more specifically in wealth management?
Three elements make the difference: speed of execution and decision-making, the ability to personalize the experience of each customer thanks to intelligent exploitation of data, and above all, the creation of virtuous cycles where each interaction generates value and strengthens the customer relationship. But what really separates the champions from the rest is their value proposition. It must be clear, differentiating, and immediately perceptible to the customer. In wealth management, tomorrow's winners will be those who orchestrate digital ecosystems where advice, trading and data analysis are seamlessly integrated - while delivering a flawless user experience at every touchpoint.

Where do you think IG Bank is furthest ahead?
Our lead lies in two concrete areas. First, real-time execution. Our customers trade over 17,000 financial instruments with minimal latency and transparency of price and execution. Secondly, product innovation: we are currently developing a completely rethought approach to customer segmentation, based on real engagement rather than static criteria. This is our strategic direction - to create an experience that evolves with customer activity and rewards engagement, not just asset volume.

Deloitte stresses the need for a "mobile-first mindset" and a "future-proof" user experience. How is this to be understood?
Mobile-first" doesn't simply mean adapting a website to a smaller screen. It means designing the complete experience for users who expect instant responsiveness, instinctive navigation, and above all, seamless continuity between mobile, desktop and API. "Future proof" means building an architecture that adapts to emerging behaviors - voice, AI agents, embedded finance - without a complete overhaul with each innovation. Embedded finance means integrating trading services directly into other applications, such as your asset management tool, without ever leaving them. These trends will continue to develop. It's imperative that banks remain relevant to a generation that has grown up with Netflix, Uber and Amazon.

How are you concretely working on the fluidity, personalization and conformity of your digital pathways?
We have embarked on an in-depth project in three simultaneous areas, with the obsession of thinking customer-first. Firstly, fluidity. We have launched a systematic mapping of our customer paths to identify and eliminate friction. Our approach is to question every superfluous click, every redundant form, every unjustified delay. The customer must reach his goal in the shortest possible time and in the fewest possible steps. Next, personalization. We focus on delivering the right analytical content at the right time. Our analysts produce rich content - market analyses, sector outlooks, webinars - and our challenge is to deliver it in a way that is relevant to each customer's interests and activity. Finally, compliance. We are in the process of accelerating our digital KYC/AML processes, with the aim of reducing time and complexity for the customer, while maintaining regulatory rigor. The challenge is to transform what is perceived as an administrative burden into a fluid step in the customer journey. This is where UX makes all the difference.

The Deloitte study also highlights the strategic role of personalization in converting digital interactions into revenue. At IG Bank, how do you approach customer data and artificial intelligence to achieve this?
We are working to develop a pragmatic and progressive approach. Artificial intelligence at IG must serve three measurable objectives. Anticipating customer behavior, optimizing interactions, and personalizing the experience. As an execution-only digital platform, we don't make investment recommendations, but we do offer rich analytical content produced by our analysts. AI will enable us to deliver the right content at the right time - be it market analysis, webinars or sector insights - so that every trader can make informed decisions. The key is not to accumulate data - it's to build the systems that turn it into concrete business actions that generate measurable revenue, while reinforcing the customer's perceived value proposition.

What needs to change quickly for Swiss asset managers - private banks, multi-offices, independent asset managers, etc. - to finally discover their vocation as "digital champions"?
Digital must become a strategic priority on a par with portfolio performance. For independent managers and family offices, this means investing in solutions that automate reporting, simplify data aggregation and streamline compliance. All of which frees up time for high value-added advisory services.
We also need to rethink success indicators. Integrate customer-centric KPIs: Net Promoter Score, digital platform adoption rates, satisfaction by path. These metrics must be integrated into strategic dashboards. What isn't measured isn't improved.
Finally, you have to accept that you can't build everything on your own. The build versus buy dilemma needs to be resolved pragmatically: develop core competencies, but open up massively to partnerships for the rest. API banking, asset visualization tools, enhanced reporting solutions - everything already exists.

The urgency is there. The explosive growth of neo-banks that are breaking with traditional codes shows that expectations have changed radically. If the Swiss industry does not transform itself in the next 2-3 years, this capital will migrate elsewhere. Switzerland has always been able to reinvent itself - watchmaking did it, pharma did it. Private banking can do it too.

"The digital experience will become a strategic element in its own right.

Etienne de Béjarry — Tue, 03 Mar 2026 10:00:00 GMT

Faced with increasingly complex portfolios, the growing importance of unlisted assets and regulatory pressure, independent asset managers are changing the nature of their technological tools. Étienne de Bejarry, who has just opened the Addepar platform office in Switzerland, explains the architecture, automation and data processing choices that are redefining their daily work.

What are the main areas of research and development at Addepar today?
The company spends over $100 million a year on R&D, with almost half of its workforce dedicated to product, engineering and data infrastructure.
As for data infrastructure. Addepar has invested heavily in an architecture based on Databricks. It enables the processing of over 450 data streams from custodian banks worldwide. This approach guarantees high data quality, seamless integration with third-party systems and a high level of security, while ensuring the platform's scalability.
The second focus is on artificial intelligence and automation. Addepar is developing intelligent agents, chatbots and workflow automation tools designed to simplify the daily lives of its users. The aim is clear: to reduce the operational workload, limit manual intervention and enable teams to concentrate on higher value-added tasks.
Finally, a third strategic axis concerns the management of alternative and private assets. Today, Addepar manages some $8,000 billion in assets, 40% of which is invested in unlisted asset classes. Addepar has developed solutions capable of automatically reading, analyzing and processing documents issued by genGPs for reliable, seamless integration of this complex data.

Which solutions developed internationally seem particularly relevant to independent asset managers in Switzerland?
Independent asset managers operate in an increasingly demanding environment, requiring tools that are both powerful and flexible. It is precisely in this area that Addepar has focused a large part of its development efforts in recent years.
The platform is based on an advanced personalization logic. Each user profile - compliance officer, relationship manager, portfolio manager, management or risk officer - can benefit from dashboards, indicators and reports specifically adapted to their responsibilities and objectives. The tool is not designed as a fixed system, but as an evolving environment, capable of adjusting over time to the operational needs of the teams.

This flexibility also extends to the handling of alternative assets. Addepar has developed an Alternative Data Management module to automate the integration of investments often transmitted in the form of unstructured documents sent by email. This data is processed without any manual intervention, and converted directly into usable transactions, thus responding to a very real problem encountered by many asset managers in Switzerland.

How do you explain the fact that independent asset managers in Switzerland are lagging behind when it comes to digitalization?
This is largely due to the rapid evolution of their environment. Recent years have seen a tightening of regulations, notably with the introduction of the FINMA license, as well as the growing complexity of multi-bank, multi-jurisdictional portfolios. The integration of assets - structured and alternative products, for example - has become much more sophisticated.

What's more, the business of independent asset management has historically been based on human relationships, trust and proximity to customers. For a long time, technology was seen as a secondary support, or even a constraint, rather than a strategic lever. Added to this is the fact that many digital tools have been seen primarily as cost centers, with no clearly identifiable immediate benefits.

How do you see the Swiss PMS market evolving over the next few years?
It's a highly competitive market, which is an advantage for managers, who have a wide range of solutions at their disposal. However, not all players are equal when it comes to the investments required to integrate new technologies.
In the medium term, the PMSs that succeed will have been able to anticipate future market needs, by investing significantly in research and development. Managers will need to be able to do more with less, while meeting the expectations of a new generation of customers, more demanding in terms of personalization, transparency and digital experience.
The ability to offer fully customized reports, modern interfaces and mobile applications adapted to usage will become a key differentiating factor. In this context, the digital experience offered to end customers will become a strategic element in its own right.

How do you integrate unlisted assets to achieve a consolidated view of portfolios?
As I was saying, almost 40% of the assets aggregated on the platform are invested in private equity, real estate, direct investments or other real assets. To meet the specific needs of these asset classes, Addepar has developed tools that connect directly to general partners' portals, automatically analyze the documents received and generate the corresponding transactions in the platform. This approach guarantees a consolidated view of portfolios, with reliable, historical data.

In addition, Addepar has set up long-term cash-flow and liquidity projection tools, based on a vast anonymized database of private funds. These functionalities enable us to create realistic scenarios and propose relevant performance benchmarks, according to investment strategies and profiles.

What role do you see for artificial intelligence and predictive analysis in a PMS?
It is used in particular to automate the processing of documents linked to alternative assets, but also to feed chatbots capable of answering complex queries based on the data available on the platform.
Beyond these initial use cases, Addepar is working on the automation of complete operational workflows: customer onboarding, regulatory controls, bank data reconciliation. The aim is to streamline processes and significantly reduce manual tasks.

Eventually, AI will play a central role in the functional perimeter of PMS, while remaining subject to human validation. The aim is not to replace the expertise of professionals, but to reinforce it, by giving them tools capable of improving efficiency, reliability and decision-making.