The Mandate.
On Transition.
The Swiss SME market between succession, foreign capital, and tax architecture. An analysis of the 2024–2026 triennium.
Swiss SME M&A: A Sector-by-Sector Valuation Map for 2025
Swiss SME deal volume rose 41% to 208 completed transactions in 2025, but the headline recovery conceals a sharp divergence in valuations across sectors — from 8–10x EV/EBITDA in technology to 4–7x in hospitality. Understanding where a business sits on that map, and why, is the central analytical task for any owner approaching a transition.
The Multiple Divergence: How PE Buy-and-Build Is Splitting Swiss SME Valuations Across Sectors in 2026
Private equity buy-and-build strategies are creating the widest valuation gaps in Swiss SME M&A history — not because company quality has diverged, but because deal thesis has. Understanding which sectors carry a platform premium, and which do not, is now as consequential as understanding the underlying business.
Swiss Precision Engineering: A 66% Succession Wave and the Private Equity Buyers Already Positioned
A Swissmechanic survey confirms that 66% of Swiss MEM SMEs anticipate an ownership change within ten years — while fewer than half have begun planning. Private equity has already taken note, with Swiss-specific deal volumes rising 45% in 2025 and industrial multiples up approximately 12% since 2022.
Swiss SME Succession Wave Meets Private Equity: The Buy-and-Build Pressure Building Beneath the Market
Over 101,000 Swiss companies were seeking a successor in 2024 while private equity deal activity in the SME segment surged 45% year-on-year. The structural gap between supply and institutional demand is reshaping how Swiss ownership transitions are priced and executed.
Private Equity and the Swiss IT Succession Wave: Why Software SMEs Are Commanding Premium Multiples in 2025–2026
IT services and software transactions drove 90% of the increase in Swiss SME deal volume in 2025, as private equity and foreign buyers converge on a structurally undersupplied market. This post examines the data, the valuation arbitrage, and what the succession wave means for owners and institutional buyers alike.