Mergers & Acquisitions 2026

Gérard Araud held numerous positions within the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, notably Director for Strategic Affairs, Security and Disarmament, Ambassador of France to Israel, Director General for Political Affairs and Security, Permanent Representative of France to the United Nations in New York and ambassador of France to the United States. He has reached the highest rank in the French diplomatic service (‘’Ambassadeur de France’’). Over the course of his career, Mr. Araud has developed specialized knowledge in two key areas: Middle East and strategic & security issues. As regards the latter, he was the French negotiator on the Iranian nuclear issue. He has chaired three times the United Nations Security Council. He has written numerous articles in French reviews. He has published his Memoirs in 2019 (“Passeport diplomatique’), a biography of Henry Kissinger (‘’Henry Kissinger, le diplomate du siècle’’), two books of French diplomatic history (‘’Histoires diplomatiques’’ and ‘’Nous étions seuls 1919-1939’’) and recently a book on Israël,( ‘’Israël, le piège de l’histoire’’). He is trustee of the International Crisis Group, Senior Distinguished Fellow of the Atlantic Council in Washington DC and senior adviser to Portland Communications. He is a columnist for the French weekly ‘’Le Point’’ and the French Information TV LCI. He has frequently been interviewed as an foreign affairs expert by French, Swiss and Canadian medias and by CNN International, the BBC and other English speaking TV and radios.

Bildrechte: ©Maren Kindler
Dr. Thomas Borer was named Ambassador in 1996 and appointed as Head of the Task Force «Switzerland – Second World War» by the Swiss Federal Council. When this task force was dissolved in 1999, he was appointed Swiss Ambassador to the Federal Republic of Germany and took office in Berlin. At the end of April 2002, Dr. Borer left the civil service and founded his own boutique consulting company, which he has successfully managed since then. He is a global consultant with a special focus on Germany, Switzerland, Russia and the USA. Due to his many years of diplomatic service, he has an excellent network in international politics and business and represents his national and international clients in business, politics, the media and the public. He also serves on the boards of several national and international companies.

Barend Fruithof is CEO and Chairman of Aebi Schmidt Holding AG, a global provider of specialist vehicles and systems for infrastructure, airport, and municipal services. He holds an Executive MBA from the University of St. Gallen and brings extensive leadership experience from senior roles in the financial and services sector. His previous positions include CEO of Viseca Card Services SA and executive leadership roles at Raiffeisen Group Switzerland, Credit Suisse Group, Zürcher Kantonalbank, and Bank Julius Baer & Co. AG. In addition, he serves on several boards of Swiss and international organizations.

Luis Marin is the President and CEO of Europe, Middle East and Africa for Avolta AG, the global travel experience company. Responsible for overseeing all facets of the organization, Luis has also held other senior executive roles with Avolta AG as Global Chief Corporate Officer and Business Control Director where he also oversaw its Mergers and Acquisitions and Strategy areas. Luis served also as Head of Finance and Administration for Areas, a subsidiary of the Elior group. Previous experience was acquired in Derbi Motorcycles and Coopers & Lybrand. A graduate of the University of Barcelona, Luis earned his degree in economics sciences and business administration.

Simon Michel, CEO and member of the Board of Directors of the Ypsomed Group. He has held various positions at Ypsomed since 2006 and has served as Group CEO since 2014. From 2003 to 2006, he worked at Orange. Simon Michel studied economics at the University of St. Gallen. He serves on various boards of directors in the technology and research sectors and is a member of the Executive Committee of economiesuisse and the Swiss Medical Technology Association Swiss Medtech. In 2023, he was elected to the National Council for the FDP of the Canton of Solothurn. There, he is a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee and president of Progresuisse.

Samuel Poletti is Group Head of M&A at Holcim Ltd and a member of the Senior Leadership team since 2018. In this capacity he is leading Holcim’s global transaction execution activities and coordinates the local bolt-on acquisition processes which contribute to the Group’s transformation. Samuel’s joined Holcim in 2007 as a consultant to support various business development initiatives and held various positions of increasing responsibility within the Holcim Group at corporate and in Asia before joining the M&A team in 2014 where he played a key role in the execution and subsequent regulatory divestments of the merger between Holcim and Lafarge. Prior to Holcim, he was active in consulting and worked for an international industrial company in China. Samuel holds a dual degree in Law and Economics from the University of St. Gallen (HSG).

Walter Scherz is Group Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Franke Group, a global solution provider for residential kitchens, professional foodservice equipment and coffee preparation. He brings many years of international leadership experience in finance, strategy and long‑term business value creation across industrial companies. As Group CFO at Franke Group, he is also responsible for M&A, capital allocation, treasury and performance management. As such, he forms part of the oversight boards on post-merger integrations, with a strong focus on structured execution and sustainable value creation. Walter is involved in the entire M&A lifecycle, from target definition and due diligence to deal execution, integration and delivery of planned synergies. Walter holds a licentiate in Economics at the University of St. Gallen. After completing additional education programs and professional positions, e.g. at KPMG, he worked for 12 years at Swiss stock listed Dätwyler Group, where he held various roles including Head of M&A and PMI as well as divisional CFO, ultimately promoted into the position of Group CFO. Walter serves in several SME Boards of Directors and Foundations, where he brings in his industrial leadership experience.

Dean Schneider is a Wildlife Ambassador dedicated to building a deeper, more honest connection between humans and wildlife. Through his work, he shares the reality of living alongside rescued animals, aiming to create understanding, respect, and long-term awareness for conservation. Before fully committing to wildlife, Dean built his foundation in the financial sector, working in consulting and entrepreneurship. This phase shaped his discipline, mindset, and ability to build sustainable structures – skills that later became essential for creating and maintaining his own projects. In 2017, he founded the Hakuna Mipaka Oasis in South Africa, a private wildlife sanctuary that provides a lifelong home for rescued animals. The oasis stands at the center of his mission: We need to love animals exactly the way they are, not the way we wish them to be! Alongside this, Dean established Hakuna Mipaka AG as the operational backbone for his initiatives, connecting global audiences through storytelling, education, and digital platforms. His work reaches millions worldwide, turning attention into awareness and awareness into responsibility.

Oliver Streuli is an experienced executive with combined Chief Financial Officer and board-level expertise in global industrial and manufacturing companies. His areas of expertise includes strategy development, large-scale M&A and post-merger integration, capital market transactions, complex financing solutions, and major restructuring programs.
Since May 2023, Oliver Streuli has been with Rieter, the world’s leading supplier of textile machinery systems (CHF ~1.5 billion sales, SIX-listed), and has served as Group CFO since August 2023. In his role, he has strengthened the Finance and IT organizations, co-developed the company’s strategy and equity story, and led key financial initiatives. Notably, he executed the largest equity rights issue relative to market capitalization in Switzerland and refinanced CHF 750 million in credit facilities. He also implemented a major restructuring program, reducing overhead costs by approximately one-third within two years, and is overseeing the ongoing S/4HANA transformation. Since 2021, he has been a member of the Board of Directors of Autoneum (CHF ~2.4 billion sales, SIX-listed), where he serves on the Nomination and Compensation Committee, on the Strategy and Sustainability Committee, and previously on the Audit Committee. From 2019 to 2023, Oliver Streuli was CEO of PCS Holding, where he established the investment strategy, led transactions, and oversaw portfolio companies with multiple board mandates across industrial businesses and financing structures. Earlier in his career, he played a key role in Stadler Rail’s IPO (2017–2019) as Assistant to the Group CEO and Executive Chairman. He began his career in Investment Banking at UBS (2014–2017). He holds a Master’s degree in Accounting and Finance from the University of St. Gallen.

Valentin Ade ist Leiter des Ressorts Meinungen von «Finanz und Wirtschaft» und verantwortet die Planung und Umsetzung von Leitartikeln, Kommentaren und Gastbeiträgen. Von November 2021 bis Ende November 2024 war er US-Korrespondent und berichtete von New York aus über Unternehmen, Märkte und Politik der grössten Volkswirtschaft der Welt. Zuvor war er ab 2015 Finanzredaktor bei FuW und beschäftigte sich mit Themen rund um den Schweizer Finanzplatz mit Fokus auf die – damals noch zwei – heimischen Grossbanken. Von 2010 an arbeitete er im Wirtschaftsressort der «Basler Zeitung». Erste journalistische Erfahrungen sammelte er ab 2005 bei der Lokalredaktion der «Badischen Zeitung» in seiner Heimatstadt Rheinfelden. Er hat Ökonomie, Medienwissenschaft und European Studies an der Universität Basel studiert und mit einem Mastertitel abgeschlossen.

Stefan Brunnschweiler is the Managing Partner of CMS Switzerland and Co-Head of the CMS Corporate/M&A Practice Group Switzerland. His expertise spans international and domestic M&A, corporate restructurings, and general corporate/contract work.

Martin Gamperl is a Partner at Alantra in Switzerland. Prior to Alantra, he worked at Rothschild & Co, most recently as Director in the Swiss Corporate Finance Advisory team, with prior stints in the firm’s German and Indian offices. With almost 20 years in investment banking, Martin Gamperl has advised on numerous deals, including M&A, IPO, and capital-raising transactions in a variety of sectors and geographies.

Jan Schwalbe is the Editor-In -Chief of the Swiss Business paper «Finanz und Wirtschaft». He has covered business and the economy for more than 20 years and has conducted countless interviews with international business leaders, economists and strategists. He has been published in Businessweek, Bloomberg News, “Finanz und Wirtschaft” and The Daily Telegraph. Before taking his role as Editor-in Chief he was the Head of the Zurich Bureau of Bloomberg News and was working for CNN Money. Jan Schwalbe was on the Board of the Foreign Press Association in New York and a correspondent in New York and London for over a decade.