SWITZERLAND Trends and Developments Contributed by: Karim Maizar, Nicolas Mosimann, Alexandre Gachet and Nicolai Nuber, Kellerhals Carrard
Introduction In line with trends in other markets, Switzer - land has seen two challenging years in 2023 and 2024: Key parameters for the Swiss ven - ture capital market, such as amount of invested capital and number of financing rounds and exits, further declined in 2024 compared to an already weak 2023. But despite the bleak fig - ures, the Swiss start-up ecosystem has dem - onstrated more robustness and resilience in the face of global economic uncertainties than ever before. This was evidenced by various factors in 2024, including the significant surge of biotech and cleantech investments, increased medi - an investment amounts across all stages and clearly renewed optimistic outlooks by investors. As such, Switzerland remains one of Europe’s top destinations for venture capital investments, particularly in deep tech sectors, and 2025 is likely bound to become a pivotal year with recov - The Swiss Venture Capital Report 2025 reveals a dynamic landscape for financing rounds in Swit - zerland. In 2024, the total amount invested in Swiss start-ups was CHF2.369 billion, spread across 357 financing rounds. This represents a slight decline compared to previous years but remains significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels. eries across the board. Market Developments Financing rounds One notable trend is the increasing median investment size across all stages. The median investment in seed rounds remained stable at CHF1.4 million, while early-stage rounds saw a substantial increase from CHF2.4 million to CHF4.3 million. Later-stage rounds also expe - rienced growth, with the median investment ris - ing from CHF6.3 million to CHF12 million. This indicates a consolidation among start-ups, with
fewer rounds but larger investments, suggesting a focus on scaling and growth. The report also highlights the geographical distribution of investments within Switzerland. While Zurich remains the leading region in terms of the number of financing rounds and total capi - tal invested, other regions such as Vaud, Geneva and Zug have shown significant growth. This regional diversification is a positive sign, indi - cating that the Swiss start-up ecosystem has become more balanced and inclusive. What remains interesting to note is that both the numbers of financing rounds (across all stages) as well as the amount of invested capital of spin- offs from ETH Zurich has, contrary to the gen - eral market trend in Switzerland, seen an upward development, underlining Switzerland’s position as a deep tech hub. More on that further below. Sector-specific insights As mentioned, the biotech sector emerged as a frontrunner, with CHF739.2 million invested in 2024, marking a 50% increase compared to the previous year and less than 10% below the pre - vious record set in 2020. This sector’s resilience and potential for innovation have made it a focal point for investors. Notably, biotech start-ups accounted for four of the five largest financing rounds in 2024, and the significant recovery of this sector could well be foreboding for other sectors. The medtech sector also showed promise, with the invested amounts showing an upward trend in a multi-year comparison, and the number of financing rounds in healthcare IT having reached new records, mostly fuelled by seed-stage investments.
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