Alfred Gantner

Gantner completed a banking apprenticeship at the former UBS subsidiary Cantrade Privatbank.[10] He holds an MBA from the Brigham Young University Marriott School of Management in Utah, United States.[11] After his studies in the U.S., he completed internships at Bankers Trust and at Goldman Sachs.[12][13]

In 1996, he founded Partners Group together with Marcel Erni and Urs Wietlisbach, whom he had previously met at Goldman Sachs.[14][15] Gantner was its CEO between 1996 and 2005, and its chairman of the board of directors between 2005 and 2014. In the meantime, he is a simple member of the board of directors[11] and still holds 5.01% of the shares of Partners Group Holding AG, according to the company.[16]

In December 2022, Gantner became chairman of Breitling SA.[17][18]

In 2020, it became known that Gantner would become involved against the EU-Switzerland framework agreement.[19] Together with his co-founders at Partners Group, he built up a network of over a hundred entrepreneurs, which, under the name Kompass/Europa, is opposed to the signing of the agreement and in favor of maintaining the current cooperation.[20]

Gantner is non-partisan. After short-term plans to become politically active in the FDP in 2011, he now says he is closest to the CVP.[21]

In 2002, Gantner became involved in public relations for the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics in Switzerland, together with Winterthur entrepreneur Mark Prohaska.[10]

Gantner is married to journalist Cornelia Gantner.[22] He has five children.[9]

He comes from a Protestant family, but converted at the age of 23 and has been a member of the Mormons ever since.[10] He also served as pastor and bishop of Richterswil for that church for six years.[23] His Compass Switzerland network also includes other members of the church, some of whom are leaders.[23]