The Company's purpose, in Switzerland and abroad, is: the acquisition, sale, administration and management of shareholdings in commercial, industrial or real estate companies; the creation of branches or subsidiaries, the acquisition of shareholdings in, and more generally the participation in, all enterprises and entities having a direct or indirect connection with its purpose; the conduct, either for its own account or for the account of third parties, of any operation directly or indirectly related to its purpose or likely to promote it; and the granting of loans or any other form of financing to, and securities of all kinds, for the direct or indirect benefit of its shareholders, companies of the same group or third parties, in particular in the form of guarantees, pledges or securities over the assets of the Company.