Investment Concept - Switzerland

The ACRON Group has been actively pursuing its innovative real estate investment concept in Switzerland for 20 years now. ACRON initiates real estate investments on behalf of its investors that are extremely attractive from a tax point of view. The company invests in office, retail, and logistics real estate as well as in hotels in high-quality locations in areas in Switzerland experiencing economic growth. ACRON forms a separate real estate stock corporation for each property that serves the purpose of acquiring and managing the property in question. Interests in the real estate stock corporations are structured as public offerings or private placements. By subscribing for shares in the real estate corporations, investors have the opportunity to become shareholders in real estate in promising Swiss investment regions. They receive above-average distributions that are given extremely favorable tax treatment.

Investment Concept for the ACRON HELVETIA Series

• The real estate stock corporations founded by ACRON for investment purposes constitute closed property investments. The company’s equity is placed with investors. As soon as all shares have been distributed among the investors, the investment is regarded as "closed".
  
  
• ACRON invests in office, retail, and logistics real estate as well as in hotels in high-quality locations.
  
  
• In Switzerland, the company concentrates on real estate with investments totaling up to CHF 200 million.
  
  
• The real estate concerned is either new or recently built (no older than three years).
  
  
• As soon as a property has been found that meets all of the criteria for a successful ACRON investment, an "ACRON HELVETIA [name of property] Immobilien AG", i.e., a property-specific corporation under Swiss law, is established.
  
  
• This stock corporation serves the purpose of buying and holding the property. Changing the purpose regarding Private Placement properties requires the consent of the majority of the shareholders.

Advantages for Investors

• Investors can assess their risk any time because each investment is presented in a fully transparent manner.
  
  
• The return amounts to an average of 6.5 percent per year, but varies depending on the investment.
  
  
• Tax-favored distribution: ACRON's innovative investment philosophy enables distributions to remain largely tax-free by combining par value reductions with dividend payments per share.
  
  
• As investors acquire stakes in stock corporations and not in partnerships, they do not bear any liability for the investee companies.
  
  
• Low management expenses.
  
  
• Long-term leases with tenants with excellent credit.

Par Value Reductions

Par value reductions are extremely popular in Switzerland. This method enables the company to distribute liquid funds that could not be distributed through pure dividend payments. The shareholder's assets remain unchanged and are not affected by the reduction.

In a par value reduction, the par value – or nominal value - of the respective ACRON HELVETIA shares is reduced by a specific amount. The difference is used for distributions, is paid out to the shareholders in cash, and is not taxable for the shareholders. In legal terms, this form of distribution is to be regarded as a repayment of capital. Any portions needed to reach the full distribution amount are paid out in the form of a dividend per share. Shareholders must declare these dividend payments when filing their personal income tax returns. Par value reductions do not change the number of shares, i.e., all shareholders participate equally in the nominal capital reduction. Moreover, the intrinsic value of the shares that exceeds their nominal value (i.e., in particular the value of the real estate and undisclosed reserves, if any) is not affected by the reduction in par value, so the underlying value represented by the shares is preserved.

Characteristics of Par Value Reductions

• The shareholders of an ACRON HELVETIA Immobilien AG are not required to pay taxes on distributions resulting entirely from a par value reduction.
  
  
• The shareholders' assets remain unchanged and are not affected by the par value reduction.
  
  
• The number of shares remains unchanged.
  
  
• The shareholders must hold the shares as part of their private assets and may not be commercially active in the securities business.
  
  
• The shareholders must pay taxes on any dividends distributed.
  
  
• The reduction in the par value of the individual shares may not result in the share capital falling below CHF 100,000.
  
  
• Any reduction in the share capital requires a corresponding resolution of the shareholders’ meeting, and the resolution must be published in the Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce.

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