Marcel, after four years as CFO, you took over as CEO at the start of 2026. What are your plans?

Marcel Kucher (MK): Together with René, I was able to play a key role in shaping and driving our strategic realignment in recent years. With our two core segments – our own real estate and asset management – Swiss Prime Site is very well positioned. In fact, we have an excellent market position, as demonstrated by our strong results in the 2025 financial year. Of course, the leadership team is always discussing possible improvements and options to profitably accelerate our growth, and these are matters that we also discuss with the Board of Directors. But there won’t be a revolution.

Speaking of results, how satisfied are you with the performance over the past year?

MK: I am very satisfied. Our operational performance, as measured by funds from operations (FFO), significantly exceeded our guidance range of CHF 4.10 to CHF 4.15 per share at the beginning of 2025. We were able to almost entirely offset the temporary loss of rental income resulting from the modification of the Jelmoli building, among other factors. At the same time, we have further improved our efficiency.

René Zahnd (RZ): I can only second that. The results reflect the strength of our platform. We are continuously finding additional synergies, and the performance of Asset Management is becoming increasingly ­visible.

Asset Management can look back on another record year. Why is that, Anastasius?

Anastasius Tschopp (AT): We are now reaping the rewards of our brand and growth strategies. The purchases made in recent years have strengthened our franchise and are now fully integrated in our results. We succeeded in attracting record new money of CHF 1 billion and we saw enormous demand across our entire product range − not only in the residential sector, but also in products with a higher proportion of commercial space. We see this is a great vote of confidence. At the same time, income grew by 18% to CHF 84 million, which represents another new record for us.

To what extent was the Asset ­Management result driven by the favourable macro environment?

AT: The low interest rate environment clearly gave us an additional boost. However, demand for real estate investments is also structurally driven. And as the largest inde­pendent provider, we enjoy a very high level of credibility in the market, and the strong performance of our products has impressed investors. This is another reason why we are gaining market share.

Is investor interest in Asset Management just a passing phase?

AT: No, I don’t think so. Every year, around CHF 17 billion flows into Swiss pension funds, of which around CHF 4 billion is invested in Swiss real estate. This trend is likely to continue in the future. Real estate generates a stable annual return in Swiss francs over the long term and across the interest rate cycle. This is extremely attractive and difficult to replicate with other asset classes, especially when you consider the long investment horizon of pension funds.

Despite global uncertainty, tariff disputes and an economic slowdown, the Swiss real estate market once again appears to be a haven of stability – or is that the wrong impression?

MK: Uncertainty is never good, and we have seen a slowdown in the Swiss economy too. But yes, the Swiss real estate market once again proved to be very robust. The most important factor is our attractiveness as a location. Switzerland’s high level of productivity compensates for ostensibly high wage costs, plus we have a stable political framework. This combination of factors attracts skilled workers. Structural factors such as these don’t change quickly, either. The important thing for us is that the service sector – where we have a large exposure – is less vulnerable to uncertainty than the manufacturing sector. And right now there are numerous reports about the very high demand for housing.

So the economic slowdown in ­Switzerland has not affected the office segment?

MK: We continue to see very healthy demand and rising rents in prime locations. This is reflected in our portfolio, which focuses on first-class properties and achieved like-for-like real growth of 2.0%. We were able to conclude many new rental contracts or lease extensions at more attractive rates. Tenants have high expectations in terms of the fit-out, location and size of properties, but once these criteria are met, the absolute level of rent is not the sole factor that they consider. However, the situation is more challenging in outlying locations.

Swiss Prime Site continued to move ahead with its portfolio optimisation strategy over the past year. On the one hand, it once again sold numerous properties. On the other hand, new capital was raised to purchase properties. How does that add up?

MK: We want to make the most of growth opportunities in our traditional business with our own real estate, as long as this adds value – a view shared by many of our shareholders. This means that we fully exploit the potential of our properties and develop that potential to grow our income. However, this approach also involves the targeted sale of properties that are no longer a good fit for our portfolio due to their location, usage type or size, meaning that they would be better off in the hands of other owners. And we are always on the lookout for attractive and suitable properties for us to purchase. The top priority is always the creation of long-term value.

Why did you choose February when deciding on the timing of the capital increase?

MK: When the SNB began to lower interest rates starting in mid-2024, this opened up a window of opportunity for us to purchase attractive properties on favourable terms during a rate-cutting phase, as it typically takes a few quarters for cuts to be reflected in higher property prices. The funds we raised were earmarked exclusively for purchases – we want to keep our debt ratio stable. Over the course of the year, we managed to acquire three highly attractive properties and to invest the funds with a focus on value enhancement and income growth, as planned. We also succeeded in consolidating properties in a prime location on Zurich’s Bahnhofstrasse through an asset swap involving two properties in non-focus regions.

Are you satisfied with the purchases?

MK: Absolutely. The three purchases we made in Geneva, Lausanne and Zurich have further enhanced our portfolio of prime properties. All of the transactions generated returns that far exceeded our portfolio returns and increased the net asset value per share, as well as strengthening funds from operations. I am particularly pleased that we ­succeeded in executing the purchases exclusively in a very competitive market for transactions. This underscores both our position as the leading real estate company in Switzerland and the value of our platform.

In September, Swiss Prime Site entered the European bond market for the first time and successfully issued a Euro bond. What was the reason behind this move?

MK: We could have raised the funds in the Swiss market. We also have extensive expertise on the liabilities side and broad access to the Swiss banking and capital markets. For years, though, we have systematically pursued a strategy aimed at diversifying our sources of financing. Entering the European capital market was therefore the obvious step for us to take. Access to the highly liquid euro market – we are talking about an issuing volume that is around 20 times larger than that of the Swiss franc market – gives us additional flexibility. This allows us to reduce dependencies while also optimising our financing costs.

Aren’t you worried about currency risk?

MK: We have fully hedged the currency risk. The timing was also favourable, as we raised money on terms similar to those in the Swiss market.

Was this a one-off measure, or will Swiss Prime Site continue to operate in the Eurobond market in the future?

MK: We had a great response to the straight bond. It was eight times oversubscribed – and with no compromise on price. This shows that we are just as in demand as an issuer in the eurozone – not just because of our credit rating, but because of our business model too. And now that we have the option, we will continue to exercise it in the future. Another advantage is that we also managed to broaden our investor base. However, the Swiss franc will remain our base currency and we will continue to raise 80% or more of our financing in the Swiss franc market.