A website dedicated to Swiss annuities and life insurance, swissannuities.com features general, easy-to read information as well as specific articles, views, news and opinions from the leading professionals and companies active in this area.
by Dr. Herbert Lüthy, former Head of the Swiss Federal Office of Private Insurance, Berne
Switzerland has a long-established and well-developed insurance industry and is one of the leading insurance centres in the world. The sector is very important both within Switzerland and internationally. Several Swiss insurance companies are among the most reputable and largest international players, and the Swiss themselves are known to be well-insured: Switzerland has the world’s highest per-capita spending on insurance premiums overall as well as the highest per-capita spending on life insurance premiums. The Swiss insurance sector is regulated mainly at the federal level.The Swiss insurance industry is also perceived as one of the safest in the world, and has an enviable history: not once has any Swiss insurance company ever failed. The country regularly achieves top rankings in fundamentals such as an efficient legal system, long-term stability, protection of free competition and property ownership. Moreover, government institutions work efficiently and are dedicated to minimizing red tape. This is certainly also true for insurance regulation, which works both very effectively and competently. Also the new, improved regulatory framework for insurance supervision will assist to ensure the good reputation of the sector is maintained. We are convinced that this website – the first of its kind – will greatly assist all those who are interested in learning more about Swiss annuities and life insurance, which play an important part in the Swiss insurance tradition.
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Swiss annuities are unique. Not only are they a very safe form of investment, they also offer the most solid asset protection, which is particularly relevant for American investors and also increasingly so for wealthy people elsewhere in the world who wish to protect their assets legally. Depending on the individual situation of the investor, investments in Swiss annuities and life insurance may even offer tax advantages. All of these advantages are available in an environment of legal and economic stability that Switzerland offers and that is second to none in the world. |
Why Swiss Annuities?
Find out more in the interview with Marco Gantenbein, TEP, Managing Director of Swiss Annuity Consulting Group, Zurich, co-author of the Switzerland Business & Investment Handbook and co-editor of Swiss Annuities & Life Insurance: Secure Returns, Asset Protection, and Privacy: Q: Why should one consider purchasing a Swiss annuity? MG: There are of course many reasons. I believe that the most important are, firstly, the fact that a Swiss annuity is one of the safest forms of investments; secondly, the unique asset protection that Swiss law extends to Swiss annuity and life insurance contracts, and, thirdly, the enormous flexibility and wide range of insurance products that also allows non-standard solutions. Read more… |
Swiss Insurance Is Top Worldwide
The Swiss insurance industry has an impeccable track record and is perceived as one of the safest in the world. The country’s first insurance company was established in 1857 and the industry has grown substantially since then: it now has 178 insurance companies, 24 of them operating in the life insurance sector. Swiss insurance companies offer highly sophisticated products and services that are attractive to international investors who desire very safe and stable investments. Read more...
Unique Asset ProtectionSwiss annuities are interesting alternatives to more complex, more costly and less secure asset protection arrangements such as offshore trusts. The special, indeed unique advantages offered by Swiss insurance policies in terms of asset protection represent one of the most important factors that make Swiss annuities so attractive. Read more... “All signs indicate that the prevalence of litigation against physicians for malpractice is in a continuing upward spiral across the U.S. Although some malpractice claims are meritorious, far too many are not. In such an atmosphere, even the most skilled and diligent physicians are subject to an unacceptable level of risk… Thankfully, the old adage that to be forewarned is to be forearmed still rings true, at least for those physicians who take heed before the onset of litigation. Read more... |
Key ArticlesSwiss Annuities vs. Asset Protection Trusts – by Marco Gantenbein – Trusts & Trustees, 2005 Asset Protection, Swiss Annuities, and Trusts – by Alexander A. Bove, Jr. – Offshore Investment Journal, 2004 Trust Betrayed: the closure of Equitable Life to new business – The Economist, December 23rd, 2000 Why Switzerland? – by Christian H. Kälin – excerpt from: Switzerland Business & Investment Handbook, 2005 Ensuring wealth: the Place of Offshore Insurance in Wealth Management – Private Wealth Management Review, June 2001 Asset-Protection Planning: Ethical? Legal? Obligatory? - by Daniel S. Rubin and Gideon Rothschild - Trusts & Estates, September 2003 |
Swiss Annuity & Life Insurance Handbook
The Swiss Annuities & Life Insurance Handbook covers all key aspects of investments in Swiss annuities and life insurance, including the unique asset protection they offer, estate planning opportunities, Swiss annuities as secure retirement options, and other aspects relevant to the international investor.
It is a unique book featuring many highly relevant chapters, each of them concise and to the point, providing the information that really matters. It is designed as a guide for asset protection lawyers, tax lawyers, estate planners, financial advisors, other private client advisory firms, and family offices, as well as private investors who are interested in diversifying investments outside their home country and who are particularly interested in Switzerland as a place to invest. The use of concise and precise language reflects its character as a handbook and reference source. In particular, the authors have endeavored to express the terms and concepts involved as transparently as possible in order to make them easily accessible even to those without a legal or financial background. Find out more...
Switzerland Business & Investment Handbook
The Switzerland Business & Investment Handbook covers all key aspects of doing business, investing and living in Switzerland. It is a unique reference manual featuring over 30 separate chapters, each of them concise and to the point, providing the information that really matters. Besides an introduction to Switzerland‘s historical, political, social and economic framework, the book covers the Swiss legal system, company and contract law, competition law, intellectual property law, taxation of personal income and investments, corporate taxation, VAT, international tax aspects, real estate, residence, the social security and pension system, Swiss annuities and life insurance, corporate and private banking, financial market regulation and other important subjects. Overview tables, useful check lists, portraits of the Swiss cantons, a bibliography, a comprehensive facts and figures secti-on as well as a clearly organized address section make the handbook user-friendly and practice-oriented. Find out more…