Wertheimer family remains richest in Switzerland

The Wertheimer family remains Switzerland's richest family Keystone-SDA

The top three places of Switzerland's biggest fortunes remain unchanged in 2024, dominated by the co-owner of the Parisian label Chanel.

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Gérard Wertheimer, owner with his brother Alain of the luxury couture and perfume house Chanel, retains his top position in the ranking of the 300 richest people in Switzerland published on Thursday by Bilan magazine. This despite the slowdown in the luxury goods sector this year and the decline in his fortune, estimated at around CHF37 billion ($42 billion).

“These uncertainties are reflected in our valuation of the company, estimated at between $80 billion (CHF70 billion) and $90 billion. Calculated in francs, the fall in Gérard Wertheimer’s fortune is the result of the sharp year-on-year decline in the US currency,” the magazine points out.

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In second place is the Hoffmann, Oeri and Duschmalé family, which controls Basel-based pharmaceutical giant Roche, with CHF28-29 billion. In 2023, the family collected around CHF750 million in dividends, according to the document.

The podium is once again completed by the nonagenarian Klaus-Michael Kühne, with CHF27-28 billion, majority shareholder of the Schwyz-based transport and logistics group Kühne+Nagel.

Fourth place is again occupied by the Safra family, head of private bank J. Safra Sarasin, whose net worth has stabilised at CHF22-23 billion.

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Blocher family still in top ten

Next in line are the Aponte family, founders of Geneva-based cruise giant MSC, and 85-year-old Swiss-Brazilian Jorge Lemann. He climbed back up the rankings with CHF17-18 billion, despite the woes of Kraft Heinz, in which he had to liquidate his stake.

“Stock market gains from his shares in beer giant AB InBev, as well as in Restaurant Brands International, owner of Burger King and Tim Hortons, and other companies, earned him almost CHF2 billion – although this remains largely theoretical,” according to Bilan.

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In seventh place is businessman Andrey Melnichenko (assets of CHF17-18 billion), who doesn’t seem to be doing so well in Switzerland any more. He “continues to fight against Swiss and Western sanctions, which he considers unjust”, and no longer visits his home in Graubünden. Coal giant Suek, which he founded, has closed its Swiss office after 20 years in the country.

In eighth place, the Bertarelli family (CHF15-16 billion) still has ties to Switzerland, with activities in biotech and a residence in Gstaad, despite the acquisition of a luxury home in London two years ago.

The Blocher family, meanwhile, has seen its fortune grow to CHF15-16 billion. Sisters Magdalena Martullo-Blocher, Rahel Blocher and Miriam Baumann-Blocher control around 70% of the shares in the Graubünden-based Ems-Chemie group, worth over CHF11 billion, despite the company’s difficulties this year. Their brother, Markus Blocher, is benefiting from the expansion of his Dottikon ES company.

Tenth place is now occupied by Geneva-based entrepreneur Guillaume Pousaz, worth CHF14-15 billion and based in London to concentrate on checkout.com, his platform specialising in online payment processing for customers such as Tiffany, TicketMaster and PlayStation.

Translated from French by DeepL/ts

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