Zeromax GmbH was a

private sector The private sector is the part of the economy which is owned by private groups, usually as a means of establishment for profit or non profit, rather than being owned by the government. Employment The private sector employs most of the workfo ...

conglomerate registered in

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

and operating mainly in

Uzbekistan , image_flag = Flag of Uzbekistan.svg , image_coat = Emblem of Uzbekistan.svg , symbol_type = Emblem of Uzbekistan, Emblem , national_anthem = "State Anthem of Uzbekistan, State Anthem of the Republ ...

and was the largest investor in the Uzbek economy.Geneva, Center of the Karimov Empire
Pierre-Alexandre Sallier, Le Temps.ch, 17.02.2011 (retrieved 15.03.12)

Zeromax GmbH

Before being dissolved in 2010, the company was registered in

Zug Zug (Standard German: , Alemannic German: ; ; ; ; )Named in the 16th century. is the largest List of cities in Switzerland, town and capital of the Swiss canton of Zug. Zug is renowned as a hub for some of the wealthiest individuals in the wor ...

, Switzerland. Prior to this, Zeromax was registered in

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

in the United States before moving to Switzerland in 2005. In May 2010 Zeromax GmbH was suddenly and mysteriously shut down. The company officially filed for

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the deb ...

on 28 October 2010, at which point administrators were appointed and the company's assets were seized. In March 2010, months before the company's closure, Zeromax's chief executive, Miridal Djalalov, was allegedly detained for “questioning.” He was later released.Zeromax’s woes in Tashkent
Deirdre Tynen, Eurasia.net, 10.05.10 (retrieved 12.03.12) Other theories speculate that the company was closed to protect the assets because

was attracting too much attention internationally.

Swissinfo SWI swissinfo.ch is a Swiss Multilingualism, multilingual international news and information company based in Bern. It is a part of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG SSR). Its content is Swiss-centred, with top priority given to in-depth ...

wrote in 2021 that Zeromax was "closely associated" with

Gulnara Karimova Gulnara Islamovna Karimova (Cyrillic Uzbek: ; , ; born 8 July 1972) is a former Uzbek businesswoman and the elder daughter of Islam Karimov, the president of Uzbekistan from 1991 to his death in 2016. She wielded considerable influence in Uzbeki ...

, daughter of a former Uzbek president.

Industries

A Swiss-registered entity since 2005, Zeromax was Uzbekistan's largest conglomerate and the country's largest employer. The company was involved in an extensive range of industries including

food processing Food processing is the transformation of agricultural products into food, or of one form of food into other forms. Food processing takes many forms, from grinding grain into raw flour, home cooking, and complex industrial methods used in the mak ...

textiles Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, and different types of #Fabric, fabric. ...

and

cotton Cotton (), first recorded in ancient India, is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure ...

production, energy and sports. A classified diplomatic cable from the U.S. Embassy in

Tashkent Tashkent (), also known as Toshkent, is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uzbekistan, largest city of Uzbekistan. It is the most populous city in Central Asia, with a population of more than 3 million people as of April 1, 2024. I ...

dated February 4, 2008 and released as part of the

United States diplomatic cables leak An incident, commonly referred to as Cablegate, began on 28 November 2010 when WikiLeaks began releasing classified cables that had been sent to the U.S. State Department by 274 of its consulates, embassies, and diplomatic missions around ...

, confirmed that Zeromax controlled a large stake in many of the key sectors of the Uzbek economy, including its

gas Gas is a state of matter that has neither a fixed volume nor a fixed shape and is a compressible fluid. A ''pure gas'' is made up of individual atoms (e.g. a noble gas like neon) or molecules of either a single type of atom ( elements such as ...

, oil, and gold extraction industries.

Creditors

In the period leading up to Zeromax's closure, the company was surrounded by rumors of layoffs and unpaid debts. The company's closure left a large trail of creditors, with some sources estimating that the company owed its creditors half a billion dollars in unpaid debts. Amongst the companies owed money by Zeromax and its network of affiliated companies are a number of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

construction firms, which were working on the ambitious "Palace of Forums" project in the country's capital, Tashkent. In August 2011, creditors of the bankrupt company Zeromax GmbH met in the Swiss town of Zug to discuss the bankruptcy and the company's unpaid debts. The common decision taken was to urge the Karimovs to honour their obligations.Zeromax GmbH creditors to meet in Switzerland
UzNews.net 08.08.11(retrieved 15.03.12)

Switzerland

The family uses the services of a Swiss lawyer

who serves as their proxy to manage their affairs and the liquidation of Zeromax's assets.

References

{{Reflist, 2

External links