ZURICH, July 27 (Reuters) – Credit Suisse CGSN.S announced on Wednesday the appointment of Ulrich Körner as chief executive to replace Thomas Gottstein and the launch of a sweeping strategic review.
Contested for several months, Thomas Gottstein has been faced with an accumulation of scandals and spectacular losses which have led to the fall in the share price and fueled the anger of shareholders.
The announcement of a strategic review, which could result in a reduction of air cover on the investment banking front, coincides with the publication of a loss of 1.59 billion Swiss francs (1.63 billion euros) in Q2, a figure well below market expectations, which anticipated a net loss of 206 million francs.
Its CET1 capital ratio stood at 13.5% of risk-weighted assets, meeting its short-term target of 13.5% and close to the 13.6% expected by the market.
“Our results for the second quarter of 2022 were disappointing, particularly at the Investment Bank, and were impacted by higher litigation provisions and other adjusting items. The bank’s performance was significantly impacted by a a number of external factors, including geopolitical, macroeconomic and market headwinds,” the outgoing chief executive said in a statement.
(Michael Shields and Maria Sheahan; French version Nicolas Delame, editing by Kate Entringer)