The appointment of a new CEO in China follows Credit Suisse’s announcement in April of the plan to increase its stake in the onshore securities joint venture to 51 percent and the recent nomination of Shan Li to the board of directors of the Swiss bank.

Credit Suisse appointed Zhenyi Tang as CEO China, according to a media release on Monday. He has thorough experience in building businesses in China and enhancing connectivity between China and international markets.

Based in Beijing, Tang will drive the execution of Credit Suisse’s strategy in China across its business and regulatory activities. He will oversee the bank’s onshore entities and report to Helman Sitohang, CEO Asia Pacific at Credit Suisse. He will join the Swiss bank this month and will be a member of the bank’s Asia Pacific operating committee.

Working for the World Bank

In the past eight years, Tang held various executive roles at Citic Group in Beijing and Hong Kong, most recently as chairman and executive committee member of CLSA in Hong Kong, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Citic Securities.

Prior to joining Citic, Tang spent 17 years at the ministry of finance of the People’s Republic of China, including a secondment to the World Bank working for the executive director for China.

Second Asia-Based Board Member

His appointment follows Credit Suisse’s announcement in April of its plan to increase the stake in the onshore securities joint venture to 51 percent, and the recent nomination of Shan Li to the board of directors of Credit Suisse. Li is the second Asia-based member of the board of directors, alongside Kai S. Nargolwala.

Credit Suisse was the first Swiss bank to establish a branch in China with the opening of its Shanghai offices in 1994. In addition to its securities joint venture in China, the bank also has an asset management joint venture, ICBC Credit Suisse Asset Management, which is among the largest in China with total assets under management of almost 1.3 trillion renminbi (194 billion Swiss francs) as of the end of December 2018.

Long-Standing Relationship With China

«Zhenyi Tang joins a long-standing Credit Suisse relationship with China and a key opportunity for the bank. He will further our strategy as a leading global wealth manager with strong investment banking capabilities. We remain committed to enabling the development of wealth and financial markets in China,» Tidjane Thiam, CEO of Credit Suisse, added.