Zug is one of the smaller cantons in Switzerland – but economically it is important, also internationally. Oil, gas and precious metals are traded on a large scale in the canton of Zug. The tax rate is low. The commodity giant Glencore and Russian oligarchs are at home here, which is why the canton also makes negative headlines.
How did it come about that Zug is one of the most important financial and trading centers in Switzerland? The former General Secretary of the Zug Economics Directorate, Gianni Bomio, looks into this in his book “Boomjahre”.
SRF News: When foreigners talk about the canton of Zug, keywords such as “home for the super-rich”, “large international corporations” or “letterbox companies” are used. Does that bother you?
Gianni Bomio: Zug is a very successful international business location with a large number of people immigrating from home and abroad. That changes a canton. Nevertheless, there are still many people from Zug who are active in clubs here. So it’s not like this is a soulless place like some people say.
How would you describe the canton of Zug?
Zug is sandwiched between the two larger cantons of Zurich and Lucerne. You had to hold your ground for many hundreds of years, but it has always been a trading center on the Gotthard route. The people in the canton of Zug are therefore used to doing business. At least until the turn of the millennium, the financial means were not abundantly available.
Zug therefore had to make sure that something could be done with clever ideas and relatively little money. The fact that the canton was then able to hold its own in the international arena is certainly due to a bit of luck. But it also has a lot to do with how the canton behaved in the economic sector.
In your book you examine in particular the development from 1985 to the year 2020. However, the cornerstone for the change happened much earlier. The Canton of Zug went from being an agricultural to an industrial canton and finally to a service sector canton. How did that happen?
The international service sector already developed after the Second World War, partly because Switzerland was unscathed.
The canton of Zug became number one in the mid-1980s.
From the 1950s, Zug had taxed the company with privileges. In the mid-1960s, the big international companies slowly came along. The canton of Zug became number one in the mid-1980s. Becoming number one is possible. Staying number one is the great art. And this was done by 2020.
The canton of Zug is repeatedly criticized for its international corporations. Or, as is currently the case, because of the Russian oligarchs who live in the canton of Zug…
Since Zug has become an international wholesale center, this topic has come up again and again. Well-educated and often very wealthy people come to Zug. I find this exchange exciting. It is clear that this does not go down well with a certain group of people in the canton. And it’s clear once again that you can do politics with it.
What are the negative effects of the boom years?
The prices for condominiums or apartments for rent are unbelievably high. Zug does not have a hinterland like the cantons of Zurich or Lucerne. This is a big problem for families: If they want a house or an affordable apartment, they often have to leave the canton. That’s negative, but it’s the price you pay for economic success.
The conversation was conducted by Michael Zezzi.