Swiss blockchain industry sees meteoric growth

Crypto financial services provider Bitcoin Suisse is among the top 50 blockchain firms. swissinfo.ch

The booming Swiss blockchain sector continues to grow: over 600 companies and institutions are now located in the ‘Crypto Nation’ and neighbouring Liechtenstein, according to recently-released data.

The industry employs around 3,000 people in Switzerland and Liechtenstein, as well as many more abroad, says investment group Crypto Valley Venture CapitalExternal link (CV VC).

Taken together, the top 50 blockchain companies in Switzerland’s so-called Crypto Valley employ some 440 staff domestically, are worth an estimated $44 million (CHF43.7 million), and hold in excess of $2 billion to spend on research and development, CV VC writesExternal link (see graphic below).

Much of that funding has come from initial coin offering (ICO) crowd investing programmes in which the public can buy digital tokens that grant them access to blockchain platforms.

swissinfo.ch

CV VC has also put together an online directory called CV MapsExternal link, which lists companies, foundations, consultants, lawyers, educational establishments and other supporting actors that work in the Swiss blockchain industry.

Liechtenstein has also been added to the directory as the principality has a close connection to Swiss blockchain firms and is increasingly described as an extension of the Swiss Crypto Nation.

The directory has expanded from just 350 blockchain entities in April, which demonstrates the scale and speed of growth in the industry in the last 18 months.

The blockchain sector’s potential long-term impact on the Swiss economy has also not been lost on regulators and politicians, who have been busy putting together a legal and regulatory framework to allow the new technology to thrive.

The term ‘Crypto Nation’ was coined by Swiss Economics Minister Johann Schneider-Ammann during a conference in St Moritz in January 2018.