Severin Schwan, the Vice Chairman of Credit Suisse investment bank, is facing opposition from some major shareholders who are against his re-election bid to the Board of the Swiss bank in April, Reuters reported the matter on Wednesday.
The investors are concerned about Schwan’s double role whereby he serves as a Chief Executive Officer at Roche Holding AG, a leading pharmaceuticals and diagnostics group, and while at the same time, he is the Vice-Chairman of Switzerland’s second-largest bank.
Schwan, who joined the board of Credit Suisse in 2014, has been serving as the Vice-Chairman at the bank since April 2017.
Some investors, who were among the 10 biggest shareholders in Credit Suisse, have stated that they would block any move by Schwan to extend his tenure.
One of the top 10 shareholders was quoted saying: “If he’s up for election there will be a fight.” Another major shareholder stated: “His role as Roche CEO does not benefit Credit Suisse . . . he should (leave Credit Suisse) and go on to another board.”
Schwan, who is currently the lead Independent Director, had shown intentions to leave before the bank’s annual meeting in April. However, some other board members have asked him to stay to maintain stability under the new Chairman, Axel Lehmann, who assumed office last month after the abrupt resignation of Antonio Horta-Osorio over breaches of Covid-19 quarantine rules.
In January, Schwan said that he was undecided whether to stand for re-election at Credit Suisse’s annual shareholder meeting on April 29. However, he expressed signals indicating that he is still interested in being re-elected. “The task now is to stabilize the bank, and I am happy to support the new chairman in this,” he said.
The Bank to Repair Its Business
Last month, Antonio Horta-Osorio, the Chairman of Credit Suisse, resigned after violating Coronavirus quarantine rules. That was the latest crisis after several that have rocked the Swiss bank in recent years.
The investment bank made an internal review that saw Horta-Osorio removed from his role and the current new Chairman who was appointed as the company looks to deliver stability. Recently, the bank announced major structural management changes as part of its efforts to revamp the business. The task at hand for the bank over the coming months and years seems to involve repairing its risk management , reputation, product offering and retaining its talent.
