Continuing the Network: Join the Zug Commodity Association (ZCA)

Closing of 51° Natural Resources/Commodity Club and What comes Next

As announced at the end of May, following the passing of our Founder Peter Sigg and careful deliberation by the Board, 51° Natural Resources (formerly Commodity Club Switzerland) will discontinue all operations after more than 15 years of activity. Once again, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to every member, partner, speaker, and supporter who contributed to our community over the years.

Staying connected: an Invitation to join the ZCA

Members and experts wishing to remain connected within a dynamic industry network are warmly invited to join the Zug Commodity Association (ZCA). The ZCA’s mission is to support its members across several strategic dimensions:

• Education and talent development, through close collaboration with leading academic institutions such as HSLU (including CAS programs), HSG, Uni ZH and ZHAW. A particular focus is placed on commodity-specific education, including physical trading and procurement, with the objective of helping member companies attract, develop, and retain high-quality young talent for the future.
• Representation and connectivity with public authorities, including structured dialogue with local and cantonal authorities as well as federal bodies such as SECO, ensuring that members’ perspectives are clearly articulated and appropriately considered. The ZCA’s last roundtable with SECO took place in May 2026 addressing the topic of Switzerland’s Commodity Sector in a Changing Geopolitical Landscape. The next commodity report from the Federal Council is expected to be published this month and includes the industry’s input from last year’s roundtable on the topic of Geopolitical tensions and their influence on the Swiss commodity sector.
• Industry networking, including close cooperation with national and international organisations such as Suisse Négoce (SN) and the Lugano Commodity Association (LCA), aimed at strengthening the visibility and influence of the wider Zug commodity community. Through its various events, the ZCA offers their members a powerful network to successfully build new business relationships.
• Collaborative knowledge sharing, demonstrated by successful initiatives such as various roundtables with stakeholders, learning experiences through our alliances with universities, direct point of contact on specific business challenges and topics and sessions like one on geopolitics and energy markets, where speakers from EY’s global network provided valuable insights to participants or the session on trade and supply chain finance with speakers and panelists from UBS, BCV, TradeQraft and Pemberton Asset Management.
• Support for location promotion initiatives, where the ZCA works closely with the Zug authorities. A joint event on recently announced location promotion measures was organised on 3 February 2026 — a topic of clear relevance to most companies in our industry in the Canton of Zug and beyond.

ZCA is also organising or supporting relevant, high-quality events, carefully designed around the current and emerging needs of member companies. To stay up to date and see upcoming events, have a look at the Calendar page on the ZCA’s website: zugcommodity.ch/events. Upcoming events:

• June 30, 2026: Geoeconomics in Energy and Critical Minerals, organised together with Glencore, 17:30 – 19:30, Park Hotel Aug (fully booked)
• July 8, 2026: CEC Applied Commodity Trading – Bridging Practice and Theory, 18:40 – 19:30, Webinar, Online
• August 4, 2026: Commodity Networking – Commodity Trading Club, 18:00-22:00, Theatre Casino Zug

If you are interested in joining or receiving further information, the ZCA would be pleased to add you to its newsletter mailing list. Please subscribe by completing the following form: zugcommodity.ch/contact-us/

Should you be interested in scheduling a meeting, or arranging a visit to your company, please contact the ZCA directly by email: info@zugcommodity.ch

ZCA would be delighted to welcome you as a new member, and looks forward to hearing from you!

Kind regards,

Wolfram Kuoni, ZCA Chairman
Reto Hofer, ZCA Board Member
Gloria Frauenfelder, ZCA General Secretary