Credit Suisse seeks ‘calmer waters’ under new chairman
Antonio Horta-Osorio was confirmed as chairman of Credit Suisse.
Keystone / Andy Rain
The shareholders of crisis-stricken Credit Suisse approved Antonio Horta-Osorio as the bank’s new chairman on Friday. He takes the helm as Switzerland’s second largest bank investigates its risk management culture following the collapse of US investment firm Archegos and the insolvency of British finance firm Greensill.
This content was published on
2 minutes
Keystone-SDA/Reuters/swissinfo/ds
The incoming chairman told the bank’s virtual annual general meeting he is facing the biggest challenge of his career. “Over three and a half decades, I have personally worked at and led several banks in different countries and have lived through many crises,” the former Lloyds chief executive said. “What has happened with Credit Suisse over the last eight weeks, with the US-based hedge fund and the supply chain finance funds matters, certainly goes beyond that.”
The collapse of the US hedge fund caused CHF4.4 billion ($4.8 billion) in losses and triggered many high-level departures. Chief Executive Officer Thomas Gottstein said the losses were unacceptable and stressed that “such events should never happen again”. He said he would work with the new chairman to “steer Credit Suisse back into calmer waters”.
Outgoing chairman Urs Rohner apologised for disappointing shareholders and clients. His tenure also carries the scars of a $2.6 billion settlement over helping people evade US taxes and a spying scandal that forced then-CEO Tidjane Thiam’s departure. The bank’s risk chief, Andreas Gottschling, stood down just hours before the Friday online meeting.
Separately, investors managing $2.5 trillion called for the bank to take a tougher stance on coal financing, according to a letter cited by Reuters.
More
More
How Credit Suisse rolled the dice on risk management — and lost
This content was published on
The story of how Credit Suisse ignored risk to chase big ticket investment deals – which turned sour.
Beer sales in Switzerland watered down by bad weather
This content was published on
The past brewing year fell through in Switzerland, partly due to the bad weather. Beer sales shrank again. For the first time, per capita consumption fell below the 50 liter mark.
Compensation for Syrian after pregnant wife denied help on Swiss train
This content was published on
Switzerland’s Federal Court has partially upheld the appeal of a Syrian family being deported from Switzerland to Italy in 2014. The man now also receives compensation.
Swiss-EU negotiations: Cassis to meet Sefcovic in Bern
This content was published on
Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis will meet the Vice-President of the EU Commission, Maros Sefcovic, in Bern on Wednesday.
Heavy snowfall in Switzerland causes traffic chaos and accidents
This content was published on
The heavy snowfall late on Thursday and during the night into Friday led to traffic chaos and many accidents in many regions of Switzerland.
Chimpanzee behaviours passed down through generations
This content was published on
Some of the complex behaviours of chimpanzees have been passed down and refined over generations. These include the combination of several tools for foraging.
More than 600,000 rounds of Swiss sniper ammunition reach Ukraine
This content was published on
Sniper ammunition from Swiss P Defence reached Ukraine via a Polish company in July 2023, reported SRF Investigativ on Thursday, citing official information.
Switzerland launches national digital inclusion alliance
This content was published on
The Swiss government launched the Swiss Digital Inclusion Alliance on Thursday with the goal of giving as many people as possible access to digital services.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.