What Avena does

Avena, formally "Avena - Fondation BCV 2e pilier," is a Swiss collective pension foundation established in 1978 and headquartered in Lausanne, Canton of Vaud. The foundation provides occupational pension solutions (LPP/BVG, the so-called 2nd pillar) to enterprises of various sizes, to self-employed liberal professionals including lawyers and notaries, and indirectly to insured persons reached through insurance brokers (courtiers) and fiduciary, HR, and accounting intermediaries. Each affiliated company chooses its own pension plan while asset management, accounting, administration, reinsurance, and oversight are mutualized across the pool. As of the most recent disclosures, Avena administers a total balance sheet of 3.236 billion CHF across 18,679 insured persons and reports a coverage ratio of 111.3% with a 2.75% interest rate credited on mandatory and super-mandatory savings capital.

The foundation's core technology stack consists of two customer-facing portals: the "Web-assurés" personal space at lpp-assure.ch for insured individuals to access documents and run retirement, buyback, and home-ownership simulators, and the Xplan-based enterprise extranet at lpp-extranet.ch for employers to administer affiliate plans. Supporting services include a multilingual (French, German, English) documentation portal with regulations, forms, flyers, and reports, plus a recurring program of "Soirées d'informations AVENA" educational events and live chat sessions. No public APIs, mobile applications, or developer SDKs are exposed; the technology footprint is administrative rather than platform- or AI-driven.

Avena's commercial model is contribution-based rather than license-based. The foundation is governed by a 12-member Foundation Council with equal employer and employee representation, owns no disclosed funding rounds or parent company, and operates with a workforce of 11-50 employees. Distribution is hybrid: direct enterprise sales, broker channels, and self-service portals, with insurance intermediaries and fiduciaries acting as the principal referral layer for new affiliated companies. The institution is autonomous from its founding sponsor, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise (BCV), although it retains the "Fondation BCV 2e pilier" identity and brand association.

Name

Avena

Legal name

Avena - Fondation BCV 2e pilier

Website

https://lpp-avena.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

1978

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Avena is a Swiss collective pension foundation established in 1978 in Lausanne that provides occupational pension (LPP/BVG 2nd pillar) solutions to enterprises, self-employed liberal professionals (lawyers and notaries), and individual insured persons reached via brokers and fiduciaries, managing CHF 3.236 billion across 18,679 insured members.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Occupational Pension Services

NAICS

Pension Funds (525110), Pension Funds (52511), Insurance and Employee Benefit Funds (5251)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Pension Master Trusts, Superannuation & Provident Funds (FSAAAGAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Pensions & Retirement Benefits Administration (BPAIAKAA), Employer Retirement Plan Advisory (401(k)/Pension) (FSAEABAE), Corporate Retirement Plan Advisory RIAs (ERISA 401(k)/403(b)) (FSAAACAF), Retirement & Distribution Planning RIAs (401(k)/IRA/Pension Rollovers) (FSAAACAE)

Keywords

• Occupational pension solutions
• Pension fund management
• Employee benefit planning
• Swiss LPP services
• Corporate pension administration

Headquarters

HQ city

Lausanne

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Others, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Pension Contribution Management: AVENA operates as a collective pension foundation managing employer-sponsored pension plans. Revenue is generated through pension contributions from affiliated companies and their employees, with assets under management growing through investment returns and ongoing contribution streams.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Avena operates a Swiss collective pension foundation (Fondation BCV 2e pilier) delivering occupational pension (LPP/BVG second-pillar) plans for enterprises and self-employed liberal professionals such as lawyers and notaries. Each affiliated company selects its own pension plan within the foundation's mutualized structure, while asset management, administration, accounting, reinsurance and supervision are shared. Customers access the offering through direct enterprise relationships, online portals for insured persons (Web-assurés) and employers (Extranet), and a documentation and information-events program.

Product overview

Avena is a collective pension foundation (Fondation BCV 2e pilier) established in 1978 that provides occupational pension solutions under the Swiss LPP framework. The company operates a unified platform model comprising three main product lines: (1) enterprise pension solutions allowing companies to choose customized pension plans within the foundation's collective structure; (2) solutions specifically designed for liberal professions and self-employed individuals; and (3) online service portals (Web-assurés for insured individuals and Login entreprise for employers) enabling secure access to pension documentation, simulators, and administrative functions. Supporting services include a comprehensive documentation portal with regulations and forms, as well as informational events (Soirées AVENA) that educate members about retirement planning and the Swiss pension system.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Enterprise Pension Solutions (Solutions de prévoyance pour entreprises) Flexible LPP/BVG occupational pension plans delivered through a collective foundation structure for companies of varying sizes. Each affiliated enterprise chooses its own pension plan while benefiting from mutualized asset management, accounting, administration, reinsurance and oversight. Designed for Swiss companies that need compliant, simple and adaptable pension solutions for their workforce.
• Liberal Profession Pension Solutions (Solutions de prévoyance pour professions libérales) Specialized occupational pension solutions tailored for self-employed professionals, with explicit focus on lawyers and notaries (avocats et notaires indépendants). Addresses the unique status and income patterns of self-employed liberal professionals who need to shape their own 2nd pillar, complementing the digital self-service tools of the Web-assurés portal.
• Web-assurés (Espace personnel) Secure online personal portal for insured persons of Avena to access their pension documents and information, and to use scenario simulators for retirement planning, buyback calculations, and home-ownership promotion (Wohneigentumsförderung / WEF). Provides self-service access for individual insureds and self-employed liberal professionals.
• Enterprise Login (Extranet) Online extranet portal for employers (affiliated companies) to manage their pension obligations, access administrative tools and obtain key information about their affiliation with the Avena collective foundation. Multi-company capability is delivered through the Xplan platform.

Quantifiable outcome

• 2.75% interest rate on mandatory and super-mandatory savings capital
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• Caisse de pensions de l'État de Vaud (CPEV): Public-sector pension fund for the Canton of Vaud's state employees, based in Lausanne. Same geographic market and occupational pension focus as AVENA, though serving public-sector rather than private-sector clients.

Direct peers

• PKG Pensionskasse: Swiss collective pension foundation serving multiple affiliated employers with LPP/BVG solutions. Closely comparable to AVENA's collective foundation model, scale, and B2B enterprise pension focus.
• Profond Vorsorgeeinrichtung: Swiss collective pension foundation serving liberal professions and SMEs nationwide. Direct peer given its similar foundation structure, focus on independent professionals, and multi-employer pension pooling model.
• Retraites Populaires: Vaudois pension institution providing occupational pension (2nd pillar) solutions to companies and self-employed professionals in Canton of Vaud. Direct geographic and product overlap with AVENA, including similar target customer base (enterprises and liberal professions).

Broad incumbents

• Bâloise Group (Occupational Pensions): Swiss insurance and pension provider offering BVG/LPP occupational pension solutions to companies of all sizes nationwide. Comparable offering to AVENA within a broader multi-line insurance and banking group.
• Mobiliar (Pension Solutions): Swiss cooperative insurance company offering occupational pension products to enterprises. Overlaps with AVENA in 2nd pillar offerings but operates as a broader multi-line insurer.
• Swiss Life Pension Funds / Swiss Life Group: Largest Swiss life insurer offering comprehensive LPP/BVG pension solutions nationally and to enterprises of all sizes. Overlaps with AVENA in occupational pension offerings but operates at a far larger scale and broader geographic footprint.
• Helvetia Insurance (Pension Business): Swiss insurance group offering occupational pension (BVG/LPP) solutions nationally to SMEs and large enterprises. Comparable pension product but as part of a wider insurance portfolio.
• Allianz Suisse Life: Swiss arm of Allianz providing life insurance and occupational pension solutions to Swiss enterprises. Competes with AVENA in 2nd pillar pension market as a large multi-line insurance incumbent.
• AXA Suisse (Pensions): Major Swiss insurance group offering occupational pension (2nd pillar) products to enterprises across Switzerland. Comparable product set to AVENA but with national scale, multi-line insurance portfolio, and broader brand reach.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/avena-fondation-bcv-2e-pilier

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles16 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Avena