Swiss perspectives in 10 languages

Alcon to move global headquarters to Geneva

Alcon logo
Alcon has had a strong presence in Switzerland for more than 40 years. It will move its global headquarters to Geneva in 2019. Keystone

Alcon, the eyecare unit of Novartis that will be spun off as a separate company in 2019, plans to move its corporate headquarters from Texas to Geneva, according to a statement by Novartis on Tuesday.

The company’s current global headquarters in the Dallas suburbs will remain a major site but Geneva was selected as the new global headquarters with Novartis citing Switzerland’s “progressive business climate and innovation-friendly policies”.

As part of the move, the company plans to employ up to 700 people in Switzerland. While the company’s management and key commercial functions will be in Geneva, the new publicly listed company’s official registration will be in Fribourg, creating additional tax revenue for the area. Additional Swiss sites are planned in the towns of Rotkreuz and Schaffhausen.

The future establishment of Alcon’s global headquarters in Geneva is an extension of the combined efforts of Fribourg and Geneva according to Dejan Nikolic, Delegate for Economic Development, Research and Innovation of the Canton of Geneva. About ten years ago, the two cantons sought to attract Alcon to the area.

This decision comes as Geneva seeks to maintain its attractiveness to multinational companies despite concerns about housing shortages fuelled in part by the thousands of peopleExternal link who come to live and work in the city every year.

News

Two Rothornbahn gondolas cross each other on Lenzerheide on Friday, April 3, 2009.

More

Swiss cable car activity rose in winter 2023-2024

This content was published on In the winter season up to April 2024, railway and cable car operators ferried 3% more visitors compared to the previous winter, and 5% more than the five-year average.

Read more: Swiss cable car activity rose in winter 2023-2024
flooding Rhine

More

Rhine flooding: Swiss to invest CHF1 billion with Austria

This content was published on As part of an international agreement with Austria, the Swiss government wants to pump CHF1 billion ($1.1 billion) into flood protection measures along the Rhine over the next three decades.

Read more: Rhine flooding: Swiss to invest CHF1 billion with Austria

In compliance with the JTI standards

More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative

You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!

If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR