Credit Suisse has terminated its veteran dealmaker Marco Illy for cause with immediate effect, finews.asia has learned. The move comes before the investment banker is set to cross the street to rival UBS.
The move was a coup for UBS: Marco Illy is poised to take over the Swiss giant's domestic investment bank in December. Illy, a prolific rainmaker, was the bedrock of Credit Suisse's investment bank in Switzerland for years.
Illy appears to have stumbled over rules governing his exit at Credit Suisse, finews.asia has learned, and the bank has terminated the banker from its employ with immediate effect.
When switching firms, bankers are typically prohibited from contacting their clients for a certain period of time, or working during their notice period – so-called «gardening leaves» often last as long as six months.
Suspected Poaching
Credit Suisse suspects Illy of attempting to entice clients over to UBS. The banker was reprimanded by Lara Warner, Credit Suisse's compliance boss, then this week received his termination letter for cause, finews.asia learned.
A person close to Illy said that the banker merely took a call from a disgruntled Credit Suisse client, whom he referred to a future UBS colleague. Spokespersons for both banks declined to comment.
Influential Rainmaker
Marco Illy worked for Switzerland's second-largest bank for nearly thirty years and is the erstwhile mentor of Thomas Gottstein, who now runs Credit Suisse's domestic arm. Even if Illy had stepped back from the top investment banking job before leaving Credit Suisse altogether in May, his departure was nevertheless a blow for the bank.
The supremely well-connected banker was tied to some of the biggest deals in Switzerland's corporate history including Nestle's purchase of Perrier, Novartis' sale of Alcon, the carve-outs of Syngenta from Novartis and Givaudan from Roche as well as the purchase of Ciba by BASF. He also had a hand in most major capital market transactions in Switzerland, including the Swiss government's sale of its stake in UBS one year after its 2008 bailout or ABB's recapitalization.
Illy's team was also responsible for most of Switzerland's initial public offerings including those of Glencore, EFG International, DKSH, Geberit, Barry Callebaut, Panalpina, Actelion, and Leonteq.
