Switzerland is a country renowned worldwide for its excellent financial landscape and is considered a sanctuary for banking. So, Switzerland couldn’t miss from the world of cryptocurrencies, and this is why it has embraced them and become a crypto-friendly state that encourages people to consider digital currencies, and offer the needed details on how to buy ETH. Cryptocurrencies have changed forever the financial aspect worldwide, as they have offered a new alternative to fiat money. From the time Bitcoin was launched in 2009, the crypto sector has benefited from tremendous growth, where more and more cryptocurrencies appeared constantly. One of the most known competitors of Bitcoin is Ethereum, which was launched in 2015. Can you guess where? Well, Vitalik Buterin and the other co-founders of Ethereum put all the details of developing Ethereum in place in Zug when they stayed in a small apartment here.
Switzerland is a country known for its beautiful natural landscape, but it also has a massive impact on the development of cryptocurrencies, especially Ethereum. This is why, Zug has been seen as the perfect place for crypto companies to place their base in this location. Zug is also known as the Crypto Valley, the term being used to refer to Silicon Valley and the important role that cryptocurrencies have in this place. Switzerland has created a thriving ecosystem in Zug, especially thanks to its regulations and policies.
In this article, we will explore more about the Crypto Valley and its relationship between Ethereum and the world of cryptocurrencies in general.
The first steps of Ethereum into the crypto landscape
The first cryptocurrency was launched in 2009, when Bitcoin was developed, which has taken the world by storm, and changed forever the financial landscape. Vitalik Buterin, one of the co-founders of Ethereum, has become interested in Bitcoin, but he thought that the blockchain could be improved by introducing more novelties. Even though he discussed with some developers of Bitcoin, his idea hasn’t been considered, which made him decide to try to launch his own crypto project. In 2012, Vitalik Buterin traveled around the world to find out more about the intriguing world of cryptocurrencies, where he attended several conferences.
It seems that in this trip, he conveyed the idea of Ethereum, a blockchain and cryptocurrency that goes beyond just the transactional aspect. Buterin was interested in many fields of academic disciplines, and cryptography, information theory, politics, economics and sociology were some of them. This is why, when Vitalik developed Ethereum, he tried to create something that was at the intersection of those disciplines and saw Ethereum as a tool to build a more trustworthy and secure blockchain that had unique features.
Then, Vitalik drafted the Ethereum Whitepaper and sent it to other crypto enthusiasts. Some of them were interested in the project, which made Buterin continue developing it. The Ethereum Whitepaper was launched in 2013, at the end of the year, and just a month after, Vitalik announced on a forum that it would start working towards developing the project.
Zug, the birthplace of Ethereum
Then, Vitalik Buterin, along with other coders and co-founders, started to work in a small apartment in Zug, where he also set the base of the Ethereum Foundation. This legal entity was created in June 2014, so that Vitalik Buterin and the other founders could be able to manage the marketing and legal efforts of the crowdfunding. Even though they started working towards launching Ethereum, they didn’t have the funds to do that, and this is why they opted to crowdfund the Ethereum project. And luckily, the campaign turned out to be very successful, as the Foundation earned about $18 million in just 42 days. This campaign was so successful that it positioned in 5th place in the history of crowdfunding projects.
Because the Ethereum project was a prosperous one, over the years, plenty of other individuals followed the steps of Buterin and chose to place their headquarters in Zug. Some of the companies are Ethereum, Polkadot, Near, Tezos and Dfinity. This is how Switzerland experienced a boom in the fintech industry, which significantly impacted its further development. Now, Zug benefits from numerous companies from blockchain technology, and in Switzerland, there are more than 1,100 crypto businesses and 5,000 employees, which represent an essential pillar in the crypto space.
What is the regulatory framework around cryptocurrencies in Switzerland?
Switzerland is a country that has promoted cryptocurrencies, and has become the home of one of the most important blockchain ecosystems that constantly welcomes businesses and entrepreneurs from the crypto space. And one of the reasons that lead to this is the regulations around crypto. In Switzerland, crypto is categorized as an asset class and not like a security, and the transfer and ownership of virtual currencies can be compared with other asset classes like gold and property. The leading authority of the country, the Swiss Federal Tax Administration, has subjected digital currencies to capital gains, income and wealth taxes in a transparent manner, and in this way, it removed the ambiguity that people had towards transferring or selling digital currencies.
Switzerland supports cryptocurrencies in many ways, like setting Bitcoin ATMs around the cities and accepting Bitcoin payments for all council services, which happened in Zug. What’s more, even the Swiss Federal Railways allows citizens to purchase Bitcoin from the ticketing machines.In Zug, citizens can also use ETH and BTC to pay their taxes, which can be made up to 100,000 Swiss francs.
Conclusion
Zug is an important player in the crypto world, as it is home to numerous companies from the crypto sphere, driving innovation and supporting the use of digital currencies. Several people consider Zug one of the most essential crypto hubs around the world, which happened in great measure because the country is open to innovation. Plus, Zug is the place where the Ethereum Foundation was placed, and as Ethereum has become one of the most critical blockchains around the world, it has attracted other crypto founders to this fantastic natural destination.
Lynn Martelli is an editor at Readability. She received her MFA in Creative Writing from Antioch University and has worked as an editor for over 10 years. Lynn has edited a wide variety of books, including fiction, non-fiction, memoirs, and more. In her free time, Lynn enjoys reading, writing, and spending time with her family and friends.
