Funding
Who pays for the growth?
From the first franc out of your own pocket to a Series A round: which capital fits which phase – and what investors expect in return.
By phase
Funding follows maturity.
Not every instrument fits every phase. Approach a bank at idea stage and you won't get a loan. Still relying on 3F capital after your Series A, and you lose time and momentum.
Idea
CHF 0 – 50,000
Own funds, 3F (Family, Friends, Fools), competitions
Concept, prototype, first customer conversations. At this stage investors don't expect traction yet, but a clear problem and a credible approach to solving it.
Pre-seed
CHF 50,000 – 500,000
Venture Kick, W.A. de Vigier, Innosuisse coaching, first business angels
MVP live, first paying customers or pilot partners. Valuation usually between CHF 1–5 million post-money.
Seed
CHF 500,000 – 3 million
Angel syndicates (SICTIC, BAS), seed funds, convertible loans
Scalable business model, product-market-fit signals, small team. Valuation CHF 3–10 million.
Series A
CHF 3 – 15 million
VC funds (Redalpine, Lakestar, btov, Verve, Wingman)
Growth phase: clearly measurable unit economics, recurring revenue, international ambition.
Growth / Series B+
CHF 15 million+
Growth funds, corporate VC, private equity, debt financing
Established market position, focus on expansion, M&A and efficiency. Often a mix of equity and debt.
Instruments
The tools in detail
Bootstrapping & 3F
Own funds and capital from your personal network (Family, Friends, Fools). Advantage: no dilution, no external requirements. Downside: limited amount, personal risk. For many service start-ups, bootstrapping is enough to reach profitability.
Bank loan & SME loan
Classic corporate loan from a Swiss bank – usually secured (guarantee, pledge, collateral). Interest rates for SMEs in 2026 are typically 2.5–5% depending on creditworthiness. Banks require 2–3 years of financial statements, a business plan and usually a guarantee if there's no hard collateral.
Loan guarantee cooperatives
Four federally supported guarantee cooperatives (BG Mitte, BG Ost, BG SüdWest, SAFFA – the latter for women) guarantee bank loans up to CHF 1 million. The Confederation covers 65% of losses. Guarantee fee about 1.25% p.a. Ideal for companies with a viable concept but no collateral.
Business angels
Private investors who bring their own money, network and experience. Tickets usually CHF 25,000 – 250,000. Key contact points in Switzerland: SICTIC (largest network, tech-focused), Go Beyond, Business Angels Switzerland (BAS), A3 Angels.
Venture capital
Professional funds with ticket sizes from about CHF 500,000. Active Swiss VCs: Redalpine, Lakestar, btov, Verve Ventures, Wingman Ventures, Serpentine Ventures, Swisscom Ventures, Alpana Ventures. Typically expect a 10%+ stake, a board seat and a clear exit perspective.
Crowdfunding
Reward-based via wemakeit or funders.ch (customers pre-finance products). Equity crowdfunding via Conda or Investiere. Lending crowdfunding via Crowd4Cash, Lend, Swisspeers. Side effect: marketing and validation.
Innovation funding
Innosuisse innovation projects (federal cost-sharing for R&D with a university), Innosuisse start-up coaching (Core & Scale-up coaching free of charge), BRIDGE (proof of concept), Venture Kick (up to CHF 150,000), Venturelab, W.A. de Vigier award (5x CHF 100,000/year), >>venture>>. Non-dilutive capital.
Non-dilutive capital first
Regional
Cantonal & regional support
Every region in Switzerland has its own innovation and economic development agencies. They usually offer free coaching, access to networks and sometimes loans or prize money.
Standortförderung Canton Zurich
Advice, network, access to programs for start-ups based in ZH.
Innovaud (VD)
Cantonal innovation agency, coaching and access to capital in Vaud.
Fondation FIT (Vaud / French-speaking Switzerland)
Interest-free innovation loans up to CHF 100,000 for early-stage start-ups.
Startfeld (Eastern Switzerland)
Coaching, Diamant award, access to investors in the St. Gallen region.
BaselArea.swiss (BS/BL)
Innovation hub for life sciences, medtech, innovation.
Innovaargau (AG)
Innovation funding and networking in the canton of Aargau.
When it gets serious
What investors regulate in the term sheet
A term sheet is the outline of the investment terms – usually not legally binding, but in practice the basis for the investment agreement and shareholders' agreement. You should understand these clauses before signing.
- Valuation (pre-/post-money)
- Valuation before or after investment. Determines founder dilution.
- Liquidation preference
- Order of payout in an exit. "1x non-participating" is standard market practice; participating or multiples > 1x are investor-friendly.
- Vesting
- Founder shares vest over 4 years with a 1-year cliff – protects against a co-founder leaving early.
- Anti-dilution
- Protection against lower valuations in later rounds. Weighted average is fair, full ratchet is very investor-friendly.
- Pro-rata rights
- Investors may maintain their ownership percentage in follow-on rounds.
- Drag-along / tag-along
- Governs co-sale obligations in an exit. Standard, but watch the thresholds.
- Board seats
- Who sits on the board of directors? Important for strategic control.
Pitch deck: the 10 standard slides
Investors see thousands of decks. What works is a concise, clear sequence: (1) problem, (2) solution, (3) market & size, (4) product / demo, (5) business model, (6) traction / KPIs, (7) go-to-market, (8) team, (9) financials & ask, (10) vision. 10–15 slides, under 10 minutes. Appendix for details.
Legal form and funding rounds
For funding rounds, the AG (stock corporation) is practically always the right legal form: shares are easier to transfer than GmbH units, employee participation plans are more flexible, and a shareholders' agreement is standard. A GmbH can, if needed, be converted tax-neutrally into an AG.