It was part tech demo, part high-speed finance pitch, and part crypto-flavored celebration: On Wednesday, the latest edition of AssetRush once again gathered some of the world's most dynamic minds in digital and alternative finance under the vaulted ceilings of the Kaufleuten.

The event, created by GenTwo founders Patrick Loepfe and Philippe A. Naegeli and independently organized by Noëlle Dettwyler, has become a benchmark for Switzerland’s assetization scene — where finance meets code, and where traditional suits mix increasingly with sneaker-clad digital natives.

AssetRush organizer Noëlle Dettwyler. (Image: Courtesy)

The format was as tight as ever: five-minute time slots enforced with music cut-offs and a buzzer, all to keep the innovation flowing and attention sharp.

New Award, New Energy

A key highlight of this edition was the announcement of the inaugural AssetAwards, a new initiative by finews.com and AssetRush to recognize pioneers across the asset universe. Based on a multi-week public vote with well over 1,000 participants, the following three winners emerged:

• Alternatives: Fatmire Bekiri, Head of Tokenization at Sygnum Bank, was honored for orchestrating the world’s first tokenization of a physical Picasso artwork («Fillette au béret»), making fractionalized art ownership accessible, compliant, and profitable — with investors earning around 20 percent in total returns.
  
  Sygnum's Fatmire Bekiri. (Image: Courtesy)
• Digital Assets: Alexander Thoma, Head of Digital Assets at Postfinance, introduced Ethereum staking to the bank’s clients — a Swiss first for a systemically important institution — further expanding its 2024 digital assets platform and bridging banking with blockchain.
  
  Alexander Thoma from Postfinance. (Image: Courtesy)
• Traditional Assets: André Müller, Head of UBS Asset Management Switzerland, was recognized for launching the «UBS USD Money Market Investment Fund Token» in April 2024 — a move that tokenizes conventional fund vehicles and signals UBS’ commitment to distributed ledger technology in asset management.
  
  UBS Asset Management's Stefan Richner Received the Award on Behalf of André Müller. (Image: Courtesy)

Big Names, Bold Claims

This year’s speaker lineup reflected the growing maturity and reach of the assetization movement. The presence of institutions like Goldman Sachs Asset Management (via Michael Bogdan), Fidelity International Strategic Ventures (Erik Wiesner-Mostenicky), Citi (Nisha Surendran), EY (Remo Wey) and Vontobel (Georg von Wattenwyl) signaled that traditional finance is no longer a bystander.

In his capacity as president of the Swiss Structured Products Association (SSPA), Georg von Wattenwyl officially welcomed the AssetRushs parent company GenTwo as a new member of the Swiss Structured Products Association.

On the venture and academic side, innovation leaders such as Tenity’s Brigitta Gyoerfi and Stack Asset Management’s Pete Casella added to the intellectual backbone of the event. Global voices included Christopher Mizer (Vivaris Capital), Carl Szantyr (Blockstone Capital), and Kean Birch (York University).

Zurich, But Not As You Know It

The discussions continued with street food from Sternen Grill, ramen stalls, crab rolls, and an open bar.

The final afterparty, staged in partnership with Forbes, capped off the evening with beats, drinks, and networking that extended well past midnight. Few ties were seen. Plenty of ideas were exchanged.