Only 36.3% of 2,400 Swiss surveyed by Fribourg’s School of Management felt they were capable of creating a new company. This is the lowest level of confidence since 2012, say authors of the report which fed into the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2018/19External link. Only Italians were less confident among the 15 high-income countries surveyed, with Canadians and Americans at the top (little over 55%).
The fear of failure has also increased by 10 percentage points compared to 2017. Overall, only 7.4% of Swiss participated in entrepreneurial activities in 2018 compared to an average of 10.4% across all 15 countries surveyed. Among 18-24-year-olds only 2.2% were involved in entrepreneurial activity, the lowest among countries surveyed and well below the average of 9.5%.
The silver lining in the Swiss startup scene was the quality of the startups. The proportion of companies which were founded as a result of good opportunities was above average (67.6%), while those created out of necessity accounted for only 13.9%.
“This explains why founders tend to have high growth expectations: one-third would like to hire six or more people in the next five years,” says the report.
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First-half investment in Swiss start-ups doubles to more than CHF1 billion
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Venture capital investment in Swiss start-ups doubled during the first half of 2019 to exceed CHF1 billion ($1.01 billion).
Swiss money laundering office registers record number of reports
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The Money Laundering Reporting Office Switzerland (MROS) registered a record number of reports of suspicious activity last year.
Two teens accused of planning terror attack released from custody
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The Schaffhausen judiciary has released the two teenagers from custody who allegedly planned bomb attacks in Switzerland.
OECD: Sluggish economic activity slowing growth in Switzerland
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Sluggish economic activity at the start of the year is weighing on growth in Switzerland, with GDP expected to fall to 1.1% in 2024.
Report finds mistakes which led to Swiss government data breach
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Mistakes were made by both the government and internet company Xplain in the case of a criminal cyber-attack on the Bern-based IT business.
Swiss government wants better gender balance in federal administration
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New Swiss government personnel management targets say there must be even more female managers in the federal administration.
Swiss national science foundation funded over 5,000 projects in 2023
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In 2023, the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) provided a total of CHF961 million worth of funding towards research projects.
Switzerland invites 160 delegations to June Ukraine peace talks
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Russia is currently not among the delegations invited to talks aimed at helping bring about peace in the conflict between Moscow and Ukraine.
Survey: air travel most popular way to go on holidays for Swiss
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Despite the climate crisis, flying is the most popular mode of transport for private travel – particularly among young, urban and high-income travellers.
Swiss government to use phone data to identify asylum seekers
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From April 2025, authorities plan to be able to analyse data from mobile phones, computers and other data carriers to identify asylum seekers.
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Swiss start-ups to benefit from multi-million fund
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Start-ups and innovative small and medium-sized businesses are to be encouraged to stay in Switzerland thanks to a new fund.
Fintech and fake cannabis drive record number of Swiss start-ups
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The year 2017 saw a record number of businesses created in Switzerland, many of them centred in the booming ‘crypto valley’ region.
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