Does the strong Swiss Franc hurt start-ups?

Swiss high-tech start-ups are going global from the beginning. They cooperate with partners from abroad, attract foreign investors and sell to countries all around the world. It seems obvious that they are hurt by the strong Swiss Franc. On the other hand Swiss start-ups are usually active in niche markets and highly innovative which means that their markets are not price sensitive. What is the exact impact of the strong Franc on start-ups? The Chair of Strategic Management and Innovation at the Department of Management, Technology and Economics (DMTEC) at ETH Zurich is conducting a survey in collaboration with the Swiss Private Equity & Corporate Finance Assocation (SECA) on the effects of the recent surge in the value of the Swiss franc on Swiss start-ups and venture-backed companies.

Please click here if you want to participate in the survey. It will only take 10 minutes. Startupticker will report on the results once they are available. For questions or comments about the survey you can write to: smi-contact@ethz.ch.

Advice and information
Since last month several analyses, studies and tips have been published. A very good source of information is the dossier about the strong Swiss Franc on the website of Switzerland Global Enterprise. You will find practical advice, helpful information and events for internationally active SME in the uncertain currency situation.

Background information about the impact of the strong Swiss Franc can be found the current bulletin of KOF and in a KOF working paper with the title “How are firms affected by exchange rate shocks?”

The press release about the impact on the Swiss BIP from Seco that made the headlines recently can be found on the website of Seco.