The wealthy are using bunkers for living and now also underground vaults for storing assets. Investments range from tens of millions to billions
In Switzerland, secure rock vaults are being built where wealthy people will be able to store valuables and protect them from external threats. Each will cost the owner around 20 million crowns. Even more expensive are projects of underground bunkers and guarded residential compounds. Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos, for example, also spend their time there.
Wealthy individuals will be able to hide money, artworks or precious metals in special safes that are being built for them in an extensive underground complex in the Swiss canton of Obwalden. The reason? The secure storage market has been experiencing unprecedented growth recently. Hand in hand with the fact that the world is becoming increasingly unstable. Wealthy people are looking for a way to better secure their assets.
Protection comes first
That's why the security of these vaults will always be a top priority. Thanks to the fact that they will be located up to 100 metres underground, they will withstand almost any attack. According to the project's investors, the level of protection will be comparable to the standards that apply at the Swiss National Bank.
During their visit, owners will have to go through strict security barriers.
"First, you will have to pass through a special checkpoint and exit the vehicle: several security checks await you, which of course will not be disclosed to the public,"
described to RTS television the underground vault system Thomas Gasser, chairman of the board of Brünig Mega Safe.
Each of the vaults will be registered in the land registry. The temperature inside will be around 13 degrees, which is also ideal for storing expensive wines or art objects, for example.
It won't be free
They will be sold for a period of 99 years. Their price is expected to range from 500 thousand to 775 thousand Swiss francs, which is roughly 13 to 20 million crowns. For comparison: the price of a standard certified safe with massive hinges, a strong covering frame and advanced security technologies in its walls is around 30 thousand crowns here.
The idea of such storage facilities hidden deep in the mountains is not entirely new in Switzerland. In the past, many decommissioned military bunkers have already been converted into armored vaults or highly secure data centers. However, the project in Lungern raises the bar even higher. It focuses on the most affluent clientele, who have an increasingly strong interest in protecting their assets from global upheavals.
Underground Living
They themselves then often retreat into seclusion. An example is the owner of the social network Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg, who bought land on the island of Kauai covering more than five square kilometers, whose plans include a giant underground bunker. The total investment is said to amount to one hundred million dollars, which is more than two billion crowns. The compound is protected by two-meter walls and omnipresent armed guards. According to Wired magazine, the entire project is so large that a large part of the island has signed non-disclosure agreements and does not speak publicly about the billionaire's residence there. cost approximately one hundred million dollars, which is more than two billion crowns.
On the nearby island of Maui, TV star and the world's richest African American woman Oprah Winfrey has her property. Amazon owner Jeff Bezos is building his residence containing an underground bunker on Indian Creek island near Miami.
The Swiss company Oppidum, for example, also focuses on building bunkers for billionaires. The construction of such structures meets NATO standards for protection against explosions and the effects of ballistic missiles. The deployed technology is at the level of equipment used by NASA, which allows storing supplies of nutritious food for entire months, or even years. Water is brought here from a deep ground well completely independently of public infrastructure. The facilities typically include, among other things, living gardens with flowers and trees maintained thanks to an artificial irrigation system.
The Safe company, on the other hand, offers luxury bunkers that resemble a private club for the elite rather than a cramped place to survive a nuclear war. The Eagle's Nest complex, which is currently under construction, will be located in Virginia. It is to include, for example, gourmet restaurants, swimming pools, longevity programs, saunas, and ice baths.
"A team of highly specialized medical professionals will additionally provide the same standards as the White House medical unit. State-of-the-art robotic services will ensure first-class medical care and emergency services regardless of location,"
stated the company representative Naomi Corbi for Forbes magazine.
And what will be the price in this case? At least 420 million crowns in conversion!
Sources: original article, Forbes, iDnes.cz, Novinky.cz, Wired, Swissinfo.cz
