GZA draws a positive conclusion for 2022
In 2022, the Greater Zurich Area AG (GZA) supported a total of 108 companies from abroad in establishing themselves in the Zurich economic area. The companies created 516 jobs and are planning 1292 more. The frontrunners were companies from the life sciences as well as fintech and blockchain.
The number of new companies from abroad settling in the Zurich economic region has stabilised at a high level in 2022, according to GZA. Together with its location promotion partners, the location marketing organisation supported 108 companies in establishing new branches in the nine associated cantons, the city of Zurich and the Winterthur region, according to the 2022 annual report presented on 30 March. In the previous year, there had been 129 companies, in 2020 only 89, and in 2019 a total of 109.
The 108 companies newly established last year created 516 jobs, 19 per cent fewer than in the previous year. This downward trend reflects the use of new technologies, the increasing automation of production processes and the cross-border division of labour among international companies, according to the media release accompanying the annual report. However, the companies that have settled in the region are planning to create a further 1292 jobs in the next five years.
The front-runner among the new settlements in 2022 was the life sciences with 22 companies, followed by 20 companies from fintech and blockchain, 16 from information technologies and 12 from artificial intelligence and computer vision.
The majority of the newly established companies come from the USA (33), Germany (14) and Italy (9). According to GZA, their internationality increases the networking of the business location and contributes to its resilience. “We want to attract attractive companies to the Zurich economic region that can create something new for a sustainable future here and throughout Switzerland,” says Balz Hösly, Chairman of the Board of Directors, as quoted in the media release.
The focus of the 2022 Annual Report is the circular economy. GZA AG is a founding member of the recently launched Workshop for the Circular Economy CE123, an initiative from the business community that aims to pave the way for circularity, especially for SMEs. “Alongside digitalisation, the circular economy is becoming a big business prospect,” says Managing Director Sonja Wollkopf. It will “lead to more innovation and prosperity”.