When banks pull back, construction sites grind to a halt, or bitter inheritance disputes threaten family assets, standard isolated advisory hits a wall. At FiPAX AG, we combine independent debt advisory, pragmatic construction law under SIA standards, and strategic real estate and tax management into unified, actionable solutions.
Why you won’t see client names on this page:
Our most decisive work happens in existential, high-stakes scenarios. Public references would jeopardize credit ratings, impair real estate valuations, or expose private family dynamics. For us, discretion is not a marketing buzzword—it is a core business principle.
The following project insights demonstrate what unconventional, hands-on solutions look like in practice.
Case 1: The 60-Day Ultimatum – Saving a Traditional SME Without Sacrificing Ownership
For the owner of an established Zurich-based mechanical engineering firm, the end seemed imminent: global supply chain disruptions had severely drained liquidity, causing a breach of key financial covenants with the primary lending bank. The bank issued an unmistakable ultimatum: inject fresh equity within 60 days, or face immediate loan acceleration and transfer to the bank’s restructuring department. Conventional corporate turn-around consultants advised an emergency fire-sale of profitable business divisions or bringing in opportunistic equity investors at distressed valuations—resulting in the effective loss of entrepreneurial control.
Rather than succumbing to panic, FiPAX conducted a deep forensic review of both balance sheet and land register. This revealed an overlooked asset: the industrial premises had been paid off decades earlier, and fully amortized, historic first-rank paper owner mortgage notes (Eigentümerschuldbriefe) were still registered in the land records. Instead of giving up equity, FiPAX leveraged its institutional network to arrange a sale-and-lease-back transaction with a Swiss public pension fund.
The decisive tactical move lay in the tax and contract structuring: sale proceeds were strategically reinvested into operationally essential equipment, fully avoiding real estate capital gains tax by invoking the statutory instrument of tax-neutral replacement acquisition (steuerneutrale Ersatzbeschaffung). Simultaneously, FiPAX secured a contractually guaranteed repurchase option (call option) for the founding family after ten years and reactivated the existing mortgage notes to immediately establish a competitive working capital facility with a cantonal bank—eliminating costly notary and registration fees.
The existing bank was paid off in full, annual interest expenses were cut by a third, and 100 percent of business independence was preserved. A public testimonial was out of the question: had suppliers, key accounts, or credit insurers learned of the bank’s covenant ultimatums, commercial credit lines would have collapsed, causing severe collateral damage.
Case 2: Crisis at the Jobsite – Four Days to Restart
Midway through the structural shell completion of a Zurich residential development exceeding CHF 25 million in project volume, the general contractor unexpectedly entered insolvency proceedings and halted all operations. More than twenty subcontractors faced unpaid invoices and immediately prepared court filings to register provisional statutory contractor liens (Bauhandwerkerpfandrechte under Art. 837 of the Swiss Civil Code) on the owner’s property. The financing bank reacted instantly by freezing all disbursements under the construction credit line. The developer was confronted not only with a multi-month work stoppage and severe delay penalties, but also with the threat of having to pay already settled subcontractor claims a second time.
Traditional construction lawyers recommended posting expensive bank guarantees, which would have drained the developer’s remaining cash reserves. FiPAX chose a radically different path: taking charge of the jobsite within 24 hours, FiPAX terminated the general contractor agreement with immediate effect for cause under SIA Norm 118 and Art. 366 of the Swiss Code of Obligations, instantly shutting off any further capital leakage.
Concurrently, FiPAX deployed independent building experts across the site to execute an exhaustive audit of all planning and execution defects. These construction flaws were legally structured as actionable damage claims of the developer and directly offset against the subcontractors’ outstanding wage demands. In a single day of focused negotiations, FiPAX presented the subcontractors with a fair settlement: adjusted direct payments disbursed through a FiPAX fiduciary escrow account—strictly conditional on the immediate, irrevocable withdrawal of all lien petitions pending before the district court.
After only four days of downtime, construction resumed on site, and the bank reopened the credit tranches. The project was completed on schedule. Any public exposure was unthinkable: had the development been publicly branded as a distressed or litigious project, future rental rates and its institutional exit valuation would have suffered lasting damage.
Case 3: The Bitter Inheritance Battle – Preserving the Portfolio, Defusing the Tax Trap
Following the passing of a prominent real estate entrepreneur, an extensive property portfolio valued in the mid-eight figures passed to an undivided community of three heirs. Two siblings intended to preserve and energetically modernize their father’s life work. The third heir, facing pressing private financial liabilities from failed outside investments, demanded an immediate cash liquidation of his one-third share and filed a formal estate division lawsuit (Erbteilungsklage), threatening a court-ordered public auction of all assets. The continuing siblings lacked the liquidity for a cash settlement, the bank refused to increase existing mortgages due to strict regulatory affordability caps, and a forced sale would have triggered heavy progressive Zurich real estate capital gains taxes.
FiPAX resolved the deadlock by synchronizing civil property law, cantonal tax statutes, and private capital structuring: instead of liquidating real estate, FiPAX drafted a partial estate division agreement. By strategically invoking the statutory tax deferral provisions under Section 216 of the Zurich Tax Act (StG ZH), the properties were transferred undivided to the continuing heirs without triggering a single franc of real estate capital gains tax.
To settle with the departing brother fairly and without delay, FiPAX developed a hybrid financing solution: unencumbered mortgage notes on prime assets were reissued as collateral for a private family bond. Through the FiPAX investor network, a private bridge facility was arranged, allowing the indebted heir to settle with his personal creditors that same day. The remaining settlement balance was restructured into a ten-year, fixed-interest family loan serviced directly from property rental yields, allowing the continuing heirs to deduct the interest payments entirely as debt service on their income tax returns.
The entire portfolio remained in family hands, the public auction was averted, and millions in potential tax charges were prevented. Discretion was paramount: resolving high-stakes family inheritance disputes and private debt issues requires absolute confidentiality.
Our Commitment: When Standard Solutions Fall Short
Whether dealing with urgent financing constraints, stalled building projects, or delicate succession structures: we negotiate with banks on an equal footing, leverage legal instruments with precision, and safeguard your assets before irreversible damage occurs.
Facing a challenge that requires fast, unconventional action?
Get in touch with us for an initial confidential conversation. Accessible, discreet, and solution-driven.