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Swiss Business Succession Index

Switzerland faces a quiet wave of business successions (Nachfolge, succession d’entreprise) as a generation of founders reaches retirement. We track 3,563 companies across all cantons whose registry profile signals a likely succession in the coming years — owner-operated, long-established, and not yet for sale anywhere.

3,563
Swiss businesses likely facing succession
Buyers: see off-market targetsOwners: free valuation

Succession by canton

Zürich
520 businesses
St. Gallen
482 businesses
Vaud
379 businesses
Thurgau
274 businesses
Bern
256 businesses
Fribourg
249 businesses
Graubünden
185 businesses
Jura
173 businesses
Aargau
170 businesses
Lucerne
153 businesses
Solothurn
141 businesses
Valais
128 businesses
Basel-Land
80 businesses
Basel-Stadt
65 businesses
Ticino
64 businesses
Zug
63 businesses
Neuchâtel
46 businesses
Obwalden
45 businesses
Schaffhausen
26 businesses
Appenzell A.R.
23 businesses
Nidwalden
13 businesses
Uri
12 businesses
Appenzell I.R.
8 businesses
Glarus
5 businesses
Schwyz
3 businesses

How we identify succession candidates

Counts are aggregated from the Swiss commercial register and the official gazette (SOGC): owner-operated legal forms, company age, sole-signatory structures and recent register activity. These are statistical signals, not confirmed intent to sell — company identities stay private and are revealed only to subscribers on our off-market deal flow.

Planning your own succession? Read the succession planning guide or explore the market intelligence dashboard.