Following in the footsteps of the Finma director, a former Swiss National Bank director speaks out on the emergency rescue of Credit Suisse. The finger is being pointed at its management.
Andréa Maechler recently left the Swiss National Bank (SNB) where she was a member of the governing board. That didn't prevent her from returning to the topic of Credit Suisse's government-forced rescue in an interview with the French-speaking Swiss daily «Le Temps» (behind paywall).
The SNB's Governing Board, together with the Finance Department and the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (Finma) were the driving forces behind the sale of the bank to UBS.
The SNB wasn't there to rescue a bank, but to prevent a contagion of the entire financial system, Maechler said. Injecting more money into the bank wouldn't have been effective without structural changes at Credit Suisse. The bank «needed a strategy and a management that was at the top of its game,» Maechler continued.
Tougher Regulatory Instruments
Credit Suisse CEO Ulrich Koerner presented a new strategy for Credit Suisse last fall. He wasn't at the helm of the bank for very long when it was rescued, and the problems leading up to its demise go much further back to a series of bad decisions. Finma director Urban Angehrn expressed similar views in a guest article in yesterday's «NZZ» daily.
He defended himself against criticism that Finma wasn't active enough in the run-up to the Credit Suisse crisis, attacking the bank's former management. «We took measures, conducted proceedings, and issued rulings because those responsible at Credit Suisse themselves did not react sufficiently.»
In the aftermath of the rescue, Angehrn called for tougher tools for his agency, something Maechler is now echoing. She hopes that regulation will be adapted in such a way the supervisory authorities can intervene earlier.
Parliamentary Inquiry
Finma chair Marlene Amstad explained that Credit Suisse faced an acute liquidity bottleneck after an initial bank run in the fall. Why Finma, the SNB, and the federal government didn't take action then, instead allowing an additional capital increase is one of the questions that will need to be cleared up in connection with the bailout.
The events that led to the fall of Credit Suisse will be investigated by a parliamentary Commission of Inquiry (PUK) led by Isabelle Chassot, a member of the Council of States.
