The purpose of the company is to acquire, hold and manage participations as well as all activities permitted in connection therewith. The company may establish branches in Switzerland and abroad, participate in other companies in Switzerland and abroad, assume representations and enter into all transactions and conclude contracts that may be suitable to promote the purpose of the company or that are directly or indirectly related thereto. Furthermore, the company may grant direct or indirect financing to its direct or indirect subsidiaries and third parties, including its direct or indirect shareholders and their direct or indirect subsidiaries, and provide collateral of any kind for its own liabilities and those of other companies (including its direct or indirect subsidiaries and third parties, including its direct or indirect shareholders and their direct or indirect subsidiaries), including by way of pledges on or fiduciary transfers of the company's assets or guarantees of any kind, whether remunerated or not. In addition, it may operate a liquidity compensation / concentration of net liquidity (cash pooling) with the aforementioned companies or join such a system, including periodic account balancing (zero balancing). This also applies under preferential conditions without interest, excluding the company's pursuit of profit and assuming cluster risks.