Switzerland levies an issuance stamp duty of 1% on the creation and increase of equity of Swiss corporations in excess of one million francs. This tax on the capitalization of companies is known as &#171;capital tax&#187; and has in most European countries long disappeared. It is perceived as one of Switzerland&#8217;s disadvantages in international tax competition since it impedes the raising of equity and places a financial burden on companies. Start-ups, which are mainly financed by capital increases in the founding years, are particularly affected.
Today, the Assembly of the Federal Parliament resolved to abolish the issuance stamp duty. This resolution goes back to a parliamentary initiative of the Liberal Democratic Party in 2009. Already in 2013, the National Council has approved the abolition of the issuance stamp duty. However, the preliminary bill was subsequently suspended by the Council of States. After a group of experts with representatives from the Federal government, cantons, business and science recommended the abolition of the issuance stamp duty in December 2020 and the Federal Council also expressed a positive opinion, the Council of States has now also approved the proposal.
The abolition of the issuance stamp duty would result in annual revenue losses of around CHF 250 million for the Federal government in the short term. However, it is expected that these would be more than offset in the medium to long term by the positive effect on the economy.
The abolition of the issuance stamp duty could in principle come into force on January 1, 2022. However, the Social Democratic Party has announced that it will launch a referendum. It is expected that the required 50,000 signatures will be collected and that a popular vote will take place. Accordingly, the Swiss people should ultimately decide. Such a popular vote is not likely to take place until 2022, so that the entry into force of the abolition of the issuance stamp duty is likely to be delayed.

Abolition of the 1% Issuance Stamp Duty

Corporate / M&A

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Homburger advised Baseline Wealth Management and its founder on its sale to Creative Planning

On January 13, 2026, Baseline Wealth Management, an established FINMA-registered portfolio manager and SEC-registered investment advisor (RIA) with offices in Geneva and Zurich, announced it has joined Creative Planning, one of the largest RIAs in the United States. The transaction represents Creative Planning’s first international acquisition and underscores the value of Baseline&#8217;s extensive experience serving international and U.S. clients. The acquisition adds more than USD 1 bn in assets under management to Creative Planning.
The Homburger team was led by Frank Gerhard (Corporate / M&amp;A) and included Romain Hondius, Thomas Romelli and Constantin Khovrin (all Corporate / M&amp;A), Alexander Wherlock (Financial Market Regulation) and Philippe Weber (Tax).

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Real Estate

Homburger advised Yoda PLC on Ultima Capital SA’s CHF 100 m common bond loan

Homburger acted as counsel to Yoda PLC in respect of a new CHF 100 m common bond loan issued by Ultima Capital SA and subscribed for by National Bank of Greece S.A. Ultima Capital SA is a luxury real estate company that holds and develops a portfolio of high-end real estate assets in Switzerland, France and Greece.
The Homburger team advising on all Swiss aspects of the financing transaction was co-led by Stefan Bindschedler (Financing) and Lorenzo Togni (Capital Markets) and included Micha Fankhauser and Jonas Stähli (both Corporate / M&amp;A), Eduard De Zordi and Samuel Fäh (both Capital Markets, Financing), Claudia Suter, Stefan Oesterhelt, Philippe Gobet and Philippe Weber (all Tax) as well as Stefan Gäumann and Olivier Bühlmann (both Real Estate).

Competition

IP / IT

Homburger advises Landis+Gyr on the divestment of its EMEA business to AURELIUS

On September 29, 2025, Landis+Gyr Group AG, a leading global provider of integrated energy management solutions, announced that it has entered into a share purchase agreement to divest its operations in the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region to AURELIUS, a global private equity investor, for an enterprise value of USD 215 m. The transaction encompasses the full metering portfolio for residential electricity, ICG electricity, gas, thermal, water, as well as the related integrated solutions for software and services. The divestment includes five production sites across the region and involves a workforce of approximately 2,700 employees. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and other closing conditions, and is expected to close in Q2 2026.
The Homburger team is led by Daniel Hasler (Corporate / M&amp;A) and includes Anna Peter, Patrick Schmidt, Nicola Togni, Carlo Sulser, Filip Lapadatovic and Fabio Gasser (all Corporate / M&amp;A), Gregor Bühler, Philippe Baumann, Joel Fink and Kristina Martinovic (all IP / IT), Reto Heuberger, Philippe Weber and Juliette Buob (all Tax), Peter Müller (Pension), Richard Stäuber (Competition), as well as Jürg Frick and Stefan Bindschedler (both Financing).

Philippe
Weber

Homburger advised Baseline Wealth Management and its founder on its sale to Creative Planning

Homburger advised Yoda PLC on Ultima Capital SA’s CHF 100 m common bond loan

Homburger advises Landis+Gyr on the divestment of its EMEA business to AURELIUS

Abolition of the 1% Issuance Stamp Duty

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Philippe Weber

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Homburger advised Baseline Wealth Management and its founder on its sale to Creative Planning

Homburger advised Yoda PLC on Ultima Capital SA’s CHF 100 m common bond loan

Homburger advises Landis+Gyr on the divestment of its EMEA business to AURELIUS

Abolition of the 1% Issuance Stamp Duty

Join the Team

Philippe Weber

Career

Languages

Bar Registration

Teams

Philippe
Weber