ZURICH (Reuters) -Credit Suisse named asset management expert Ulrich Koerner as its new chief executive, the latest sign of churn at the Swiss bank that on Wednesday announced a sweeping strategic review as it struggles to recover from a series of scandals.
Pressure had been mounting on current Chief Executive Thomas Gottstein for months over the scandals and losses racked up during his two-year tenure that have hammered shares and angered investors.
In recent months some investors had called for Gottstein to be replaced, but the bank had resisted.
News of a strategic review that will further curb its investment banking operations came as Credit Suisse posted a 1.59 billion Swiss franc ($1.65 billion) second-quarter loss, badly missing market expectations.
Analysts had expected a net loss of 206 million francs, according to a consensus https://www.credit-suisse.com/about-us/en/investor-relations/corporate-and-share-information/corporate-information/consensus-summary.html of 19 estimates compiled by the lender, which had warned in June of another quarterly loss as volatility and weak client flows hit its investment bank.
Its CET1 equity ratio stood at 13.5% of risk-weighted assets, hitting its near-term target of 13.5% and nearly at the 13.6% the market expected. That was below its 2024 target for above 14% and its first-quarter CET1 ratio of 13.8%.
“Our results for the second quarter of 2022 are disappointing, especially in the Investment Bank, and were also impacted by higher litigation provisions and other adjusting items,” outgoing Chief Executive Thomas Gottstein said.
($1 = 0.9614 Swiss francs)
(Reporting by Michael Shields and Maria Sheahan; Editing by Christopher Cushing)
