Credit Suisse, a Swiss investment banking company, has denied claims that the firm wants to sell its business or raise capital to support its financial losses.
The Chairman of Credit Suisse, Axel Lehmann told broadcaster CNBC on Wednesday: “a clear no” when asked about the rumors making the rounds in recent months.
Lehmann described the claims as “quite ridiculous” that State Street, an American bank holding company, was possibly preparing a takeover bid.
The Chairman’s reaction comes on the heels of the bank’s quarterly deepened losses and significant litigation costs.
Credit Suisse has been struggling to recover from several scandals that have been trailing it over the years, including a recent massive data leak.
$1.65 Billion Loss
The bank ended the second quarter of 2022 with net losses of CHF 1.59 billion ($1.65 billion), which was against market expectations of around CHF 398.16 million.
The bank, in its 2022 second quarter financial results which were released on Wednesday, reported a 29% drop year-over-year in its net revenue.
Credit Suisse posted net revenue of CHF 3.6 billion for the quarter, representing a 17% drop, quarter-over-quarter, from the bank’s revenue.
“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,” Credit Suisse's Group CEO, Thomas Gottstein said in a statement.
Speaking to the broadcaster, Lehmann pointed out that the firm recorded a common equity tier 1 (CET1) ratio of 13.5%.
This CET1 ratio provides insight into a bank's capital compared to its assets.
Lehmann noted that the bank would do its best to keep the ratio between 13 and 14% until the end of 2022.
“So, I think we are good on that one, and we will manage that very, very tightly,” he said.
Cutting Cost
Lehmann, who is an adjunct professor, also told the broadcaster about the company’s plans to cut down on its costs.
In the medium term, Credit Suisse wants to prune down its absolute costs to less than CHF 15.5 billion.
To achieve this, the financial services company has initiated a strategic review of its operations.
The review is targeted at reducing costs and refocusing the company’s wealth and asset management activities.
Furthermore, the appraisal is targeted at repurposing the company’s compliance and risk management approach, Lehmann said.
On Wednesday, Credit Suisse confirmed the appointment of Ulrich Körner, the Head of Asset Management Division, as the new Group CEO.
Körner will take over the role from Thomas Gottstein on August 1.
