Kaspar Villiger
Kaspar Villiger (/fiːlɪɡɛr/FEELIGER; born 5 February 1941) is a Swiss businessman, former tobacco manufacturer and politician. He served as a member of the Federal Council (Switzerland) since 1 February 1989 for The Liberals. Villiger served two terms as President of the Swiss Confederation in 1995 and again in 2002. He previously served on the Council of States (Switzerland) from 1987 to 1989 and on the National Council (Switzerland) from 1982 to 1987.
Kaspar Villiger | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Swiss Federal Council | |
| In office 1 February 1989 – 31 December 2003 | |
| Preceded by | Elisabeth Kopp |
| Succeeded by | Hans-Rudolf Merz |
| President of Switzerland | |
| In office 1 January 1995 – 31 December 1995 | |
| Vice President | Jean-Pascal Delamuraz |
| Preceded by | Otto Stich |
| Succeeded by | Jean-Pascal Delamuraz |
| In office 1 January 2002 – 31 December 2002 | |
| Vice President | Pascal Couchepin |
| Preceded by | Moritz Leuenberger |
| Succeeded by | Pascal Couchepin |
| Minister of the Military | |
| In office 1 February 1989 – 31 December 1995 | |
| Preceded by | Arnold Koller |
| Succeeded by | Adolf Ogi |
| Minister of Finance | |
| In office 1 January 1996 – 31 December 2003 | |
| Preceded by | Otto Stich |
| Succeeded by | Hans-Rudolf Merz |
| 4th Vice President of Switzerland | |
| In office 1 January 2001 – 31 December 2001 | |
| President | Moritz Leuenberger |
| Preceded by | Moritz Leuenberger |
| Succeeded by | Pascal Couchepin |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 5 February 1941 Pfeffikon, Lucerne, Switzerland |
| Political party | Free Democratic Party |
| Spouse |
Vera Preisig
(m. 1973) |
| Children | 2 |
| Alma mater | ETH Zurich |
| Profession | Mechanical engineer |
Villiger was best known for his involvement into the Swissair bankruptcy in 2001, when he was among the members of the rescue plan task force, which ultimately failed. Between 2009 and 2012, Villiger was appointed chairman of UBS. He has also served on the board of directors at Nestlé, Swiss Re and Neue Zürcher Zeitung. He currently is the chairman of the UBS Foundation of Economics in Society, which invested 100 million Swiss Francs in the Department of Economics at the University of Zürich. He was a founding member of the Global Leadership Foundation in 2004.