Unchecked empires: who watches Geneva’s million-franc foundations? 

Wealthy donors come from around the world to create their non-profit foundations in Geneva, where they benefit from a flexible legal framework.  Where does their money come from, and where does it go? It is the job of supervisory authorities to find out. But Geneva’s philanthropists could easily slip through the system’s many cracks. Part 1 Welcome to Geneva! With more than 13,500 philanthropic foundations and assets of around CHF140 billion ($154 billion), Switzerland is one of the largest centres for philanthropy worldwide. The country has 15 foundations per 10,000 inhabitants, six times more than Germany or the United States. In its 2022 report, the Global philanthropy index ranked Switzerland as the second-best destination in the world for philanthropy, behind Liechtenstein. The report considers the ease of registering and operating a philanthropic organisation, the tax incentives they benefit from, the prospects of economic development in the region, or the framework for ...