The new Swiss Scale-Up Report 2026 shows a remarkably strong growth-company ecosystem. The bigger question is who finances — and ultimately owns — the next stage of that growth.

Switzerland has become very good at creating ambitious technology companies. The new Swiss Scale-Up Report 2026 identifies 265 Swiss scale-ups with a combined valuation of around CHF 26.6 billion. Some 64% are deep-tech companies and 43% are spin-offs from Swiss universities and research institutions. Around half of the surveyed companies are growing revenues by more than 50% per year.

That is an impressive foundation. But one number in the report stands out to me even more: Swiss investors accounted for only 13% of later-stage capital in 2025, down from 27% in 2019–2022. At the same time, seven out of ten scale-ups surveyed expect to raise another financing round within the next two years.

This is where the debate becomes interesting.

Foreign capital is not the problem

The fact that US and European investors are willing to put large amounts of money into Swiss companies is a positive signal. Global investors do not only provide capital. They bring networks, market access, recruiting power and experience in building companies at international scale. Swiss companies need more of this capital, not less.

The question is why Swiss capital is not investing alongside it at the same rate.

Because at some point funding becomes an ownership question. Who owns the companies when they become truly valuable? Who benefits from the upside? And who has a seat at the table when an acquisition or IPO is discussed?

The report offers an interesting indication. Among companies with a strongly Swiss-anchored investor base, 49% would consider an acquisition by a Swiss buyer. Where the investor base is less Swiss, that figure falls to just 13%.

So I would not describe Switzerland’s challenge as a shortage of international growth capital. It is increasingly a ownership gap.

Capital is only half the scaling challenge

There is another finding that deserves at least as much attention.

Asked about their biggest operational challenge, 60% of scale-ups point to scaling and customer acquisition. Growth capital comes second at 37%, while only 20% name recruitment as a major problem.

That makes sense. Switzerland is an excellent place to develop technology, recruit highly skilled people and build an initial company. But the domestic market is small. For most ambitious Swiss technology companies, internationalisation is not something that happens after they have scaled. Internationalisation is the scaling strategy. Already, 76% of the scale-ups surveyed generate the majority of their revenue outside Switzerland.

The next test for Switzerland

Switzerland does not need to keep its startups artificially Swiss. Successful technology companies need global customers, international talent and global investors.

The goal should be different: keep headquarters, research, key capabilities and a meaningful share of ownership anchored in Switzerland while companies expand globally.

That is why the number I will watch most closely over the next few years is not simply how much capital Swiss scale-ups raise. It is whether Switzerland can achieve both at the same time: attract more global capital while increasing domestic participation in the winners it creates.

Switzerland has proven that it can invent world-class companies. The next challenge is making sure it also participates in the value they create.