ZURICH (Reuters) – A group of holders of Credit Suisse’s Additional Tier 1 (AT1) bonds have filed a class action lawsuit accusing former executives of the Swiss bank of being responsible for its downfall.
The lawsuit filed Tuesday in a New York court accuses former bosses Thomas Gottstein, Tidjane Thiam and Brady Dougan, along with several other executives, of engaging in excessively risky trades to earn high short-term returns, as well as bonuses .
“Credit Suisse’s directors and senior executives, and the rotten culture they instilled and fostered, destroyed trust in the bank, leading to its collapse,” the complaint states.
The plaintiffs also accuse the executives of having “created and perpetuated a culture within Credit Suisse that placed profits, excessive risk-taking and personal dealings above sound risk management and compliance with the law. “.
Last month, Switzerland’s Federal Administrative Court said it had received 230 complaints against the country’s financial regulator, Finma, after it canceled the value of Credit Suisse’s AT1 bonds.
(Report Noele Illien; French version Gaëlle Sheehan, edited by Kate Entringer)
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