The purpose of the company is the acquisition, financing, management, holding and sale of participations in other companies and collective investment vehicles of all kinds in Switzerland and abroad. Exceptions are businesses that are prohibited by the Federal Act on the Acquisition of Real Estate by Persons Abroad (BewG). The company may establish branches and subsidiaries in Switzerland and abroad and participate in other companies in Switzerland and abroad, as well as conduct all business that is directly or indirectly related to its purpose. The company may acquire, hold, encumber, utilize, sell and manage real estate and intellectual property rights in Switzerland and abroad. It may also provide financing for its own account or for the account of third parties, as well as grant guarantees and sureties for its subsidiaries and third parties. The company is part of a group of companies and may, in pursuing its corporate purpose, take into account the interests of this group. In particular, the company may grant loans and other direct or indirect financing to its direct and indirect subsidiaries and third parties, including its direct and indirect shareholders and their direct and indirect subsidiaries, including within the framework of cash pooling agreements, and provide collateral of all kinds for their liabilities, including by way of pledges on or fiduciary transfers of the company's assets or guarantees of any kind, whether remunerated or not.