Loss-making excursions by the federal company Chairman Levrat warns against too tight a corset for Swiss Post
Swiss Post Chairman of the Board of Directors Christian Levrat warns against imposing a "tighter corset" on Swiss Post. According to Levrat, restricting entrepreneurial activity would have serious consequences.
16.10.2025, 05:58
16.10.2025, 05:59
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- Swiss Post Chairman of the Board of Directors Christian Levrat warns against imposing a "tighter corset" on Swiss Post.
- Its basic service is excellent and it has been voted the best postal service in the world for the ninth time in a row, Levrat told the Handelszeitung newspaper.
- The criticism from parliament is primarily directed at the company's expansion strategy.
- According to Levrat, restricting entrepreneurial activity would have serious consequences.
The basic service provided by Swiss Post is excellent, and the federal company has been named the best postal service in the world for the ninth time in a row, Levrat told Handelszeitung.
"What Swiss Post should do is a debate that needs to be held," Levrat continued. It would only be fair if the consequences were also discussed and an overall perspective was taken. "Compared to other postal companies, we have the strictest requirements for the universal service mandate, and at the same time certain politicians want to severely restrict our room for maneuver in the market," complained Levrat. He continued: "They want us to be highly profitable and at the same time pay a high dividend to the state coffers. This calculation does not work."
The criticism from parliament is primarily directed at the company's expansion strategy. According to Levrat, restricting entrepreneurial activity would have serious consequences: "Then someone would have to explain to us who bears the annual costs of the basic service. Today it is 370 million francs, soon it will be 500 million francs. That's not peanuts!"
Defends procurement of cheap capital
In response to the criticism that Swiss Post could gain advantages as a federal company with cheap capital, Levrat said: "You have to compare like with like. Our credit rating is certainly better than that of SMEs. But compared to corporations with the same credit rating, we are no better off." There is no explicit state guarantee for Swiss Post, Levrat continued. "We don't know whether there is an implicit state guarantee for Swiss Post, because we have never been bailed out - unlike the big banks." Swiss Post's credit rating is lower than that of the Swiss Confederation; it currently has net capital and no debt.
