Personal Profile

Raphael ZUMSTEG-YUAN， also known as Zu Ruifu in Chinese， is the legal manager of Chongqing Fenshare Holding Co.， Ltd.， the operating entity of the SinoSwiss Technopark. He is also the chairman of the Southwest China Chapter of the Swiss Chinese Chamber of Commerce， the president of the Chinese Alumni Association of Geneva University， and a member of the Chongqing Alumni Association of Peking University.

In 2013， Chongqing and Zurich， a Swiss canton， officially became sister cities. The year 2023 celebrates the 10th anniversary of this friendship.

Government and business representatives from both sides have visited each other frequently over the last decade， fostering close communication and exchanges in areas such as financial abilities， innovation， and entrepreneurship. The SinoSwiss Technopark， inaugurated in December 2018， stands as a tangible testament to this fruitful collaboration.

“Chongqing and Zurich have engaged in numerous exchanges and collaborations， and I hope we can further expand our partnership in the future！” In an exclusive interview with our reporter， Zu Ruifu from Zurich， the legal manager of the SinoSwiss Technopark enthusiastically shared his experiences of participating in the exchanges between the two places， as well as his fulfilling work and life in Chongqing.

“China Offers Tremendous Development Prospects”

Zu Ruifu possesses a broad range of expertise and is proficient in multiple languages， including German， English， Chinese， and French. He studied economics， philosophy， and law at the University of Bayreuth in Germany and the University of Geneva in Switzerland. In 2018， he came to China to pursue a Master’s degree in Civil and Commercial Law at the Peking University Law School， where he was awarded a scholarship by the Beijing Municipal Government.

It was during his time at Peking University that he met his wife， Yuan Xiameng. After graduating in 2019， Zu Ruifu settled in Chongqing. Yuan Xiameng， formerly a teacher at Southwest University， was on a job exchange to the China Scholarship Council of the Ministry of Education at that time. It was during this assignment that she crossed paths with Zu Ruifu， who was pursuing his studies at Peking University at the time.

“My wife and I came from different countries， so we carefully considered where to live and work after getting married. At that time， we felt that China offered numerous development prospects，” Zu Ruifu said. This is the reason why he chose to stay in China. The couple has enjoyed Chongqing’s lifestyle and found satisfactory careers here.

At the end of 2021， Zu Ruifu joined the SinoSwiss Technopark as a legal manager. His main responsibilities included handling the legal affairs of the company’s cross-border projects and overseeing various international cooperation and investment projects supported or initiated by the company.

Zu Ruifu told us that the SinoSwiss Technopark is actively preparing to establish a Swiss Innovation Center， which will be located in the Zurich Metropolitan Area. It will be the largest overseas investment project of the company， similar to the SinoSwiss Technopark in scale. The project has already completed the site selection and is progressing steadily， with the construction expected to commence next year. Once completed， the center will support Swiss or European Union companies to establish their presence in Chongqing and assist Chongqing companies in entering the Swiss market.

“Our team has always been committed to building a bridge for economic and cultural communication between China and Switzerland. This innovation center will address the previous disadvantage of lacking physical space for networking activities and offer improved convenience in the future，” Zu Ruifu said. He also expressed that the two physical spaces facilitating the collaboration between the two teams will not only enhance the platform’s effectiveness but also contribute to delivering better services in the uturee.

“Having Been Sister Cities for 10 Years， We Look Forward to Further Exchanges and Cooperation Between Chongqing and Zurich”

When talking about his hometown Zurich， Zu Ruifu emphasized finance and livability. He said， “Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and one of the world’s major financial centers. It has been ranked as one of the most livable cities in the world by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme for many years in a row.”

As for Chongqing， Zu Ruifu mentioned keywords such as mountain city， river city， and Chengdu-Chongqing Twin-Hub Mega-Region. He said， “Chongqing is one of the important cities in southwestern China and plays a pivotal role in the Chengdu-Chongqing Twin-Hub Mega-Region. It is well-developed in terms of economy， finance， logistics， and scientific research.”

He also mentioned that Zurich attaches great importance to its relationship with Chongqing. He showed us some articles published on the Zurich State website， which included reports on forming sister-city relationships with Chongqing and the visit of the Chongqing delegation to the Canton of Zurich in 2018.

Chongqing and Zurich have maintained close exchanges and collaborations since becoming sister cities 10 years ago. This year， Chongqing invited several Zurich companies to participate in the 2023 Smart China Expo and the SinoSwiss Business Incubation Competition.

Zu Ruifu explained that this event is a joint initiative co-hosted by his team and the Canton of Zurich since 2018. This year， his team facilitated invitations for more than 10 Swiss projects to participate in the Smart China Expo and SinoSwiss Business Incubation Competition， some of which are from the Zurich Metropolitan Area.

Currently， Chongqing is accelerating the construction of the Center for International Exchanges in Central and Western China. In Zu Ruifu’s opinion， the construction of English websites， platforms dedicated to foreigners， and the promotion of investment policies in English were all important. At the same time， he also hopes that more direct international flights to and from Chongqing could be established to bring Chongqing closer to the rest of the world. He looks forward to more exchanges and cooperation in the future and helping more Swiss people to know about and choose Chongqing.

“Chongqing is One of a Kind！”

Having lived and worked in Chongqing for nearly five years， Zu Ruifu has developed a strong love for the city. “I have been to many cities and found them to be quite similar， but Chongqing is truly unique！ Each district has completely different characteristics from any other.”

“I love this city very much. Whether you are a foreigner or a local， you will find life in Chongqing very convenient and of high quality，” said Zuruifu. He also mentioned that Chongqing not only possesses distinctive characteristics but is also very livable. The city has been undergoing rapid development in recent years. In terms of work， many administrative procedures can be completed online now， and the processes are continually evolving to be more user-friendly. In his day-to-day life， he appreciates the convenience of the local facilities in his neighborhood. He often chats with friendly neighbors and has made many new friends.

Zu Ruifu enjoys family outings with his wife in his free time. Together， they often ride bicycles， go hiking， and go camping. They have visited many tourist attractions， such as Pianyan Ancient Town， Zhongshan Ancient Town， and Dazu Rock Carvings.

When it comes to Chongqing cuisine， Zu Ruifu’s favorites are Chongqing noodles and hot pot. He said， “The noodles are delicious and are a convenient meal choice for work. I have also become more accustomed to spiciness. I have gradually increased my spiciness endurance from mild to medium when eating hot pot.”

Zu Ruifu enthusiastically recommended Chongqing， a one-of-a-kind city， to his father and cousin， who have both visited this city before. He took his family to experience the charm of Chongqing in a multi-dimensional way， seeing both the bustling urban city and the beautiful countryside， including attractions such as Chaotianmen， Jiefangbei， the monorail system， the Yangtze River cruise， and Jinyun Mountain.

Zu Ruifu said， “My family and I all love Chongqing very much. In the future， I hope more of my family members will come and visit.”

Photo/Partly by SinoSwiss Technopark and Interviewee