Verdict on Swiss handling of Credit Suisse meltdown to set tone for UBS

A long-awaited report on how Swiss authorities handled the collapse of Credit Suisse is due to be published in the coming days, potentially paving the way for stricter oversight of its new owner UBS. 

Credit Suisse, which was once a pillar of the financial establishment and Switzerland's second-biggest bank, unravelled in a series of scandals that culminated in its state-engineered rescue by larger rival UBS in March 2023. 

The Swiss parliament formed a committee in June last year to probe the official response to the 167-year-old bank's demise. 

The government wants its findings to feed into new regulations aimed at preventing a repeat of the crisis, which Swiss officials have blamed on Credit Suisse's management. 

Central to the government proposals set out in April is a recommendation that UBS and other systemically important banks hold more capital. UBS has warned against this, with the ongoing uncertainty clouding its outlook. 

Swiss newspaper SonntagsBlick said the parliamentary committee will not include recommendations on bank capital. 

The report itself is unlikely to have any direct impact on UBS, said Bank Vontobel analyst Andreas Venditti, but its findings could set the mood in Switzerland. 

"Depending on what headlines come out of it, that could influence public opinion which could in turn influence political opinion," Venditti said. 

The parliamentary committee, known as PUK, has been highly secretive, with the few leaks that have come out saying authorities will face criticism, especially market regulator FINMA. This is broadly in line with the thrust of indications given to Reuters by lawmakers and officials. 

Weekend media reports suggested the report will say FINMA could have done more to rein in Credit Suisse's management as its woes mounted. FINMA has said it should have greater powers and the government has advocated strengthening it. 

The PUK, which promised to publish its report by the end of 2024, has yet to say exactly when. A PUK spokesperson said last week it should still emerge this year. 

The Swiss National Bank (SNB) and its former chairman Thomas Jordan are also likely to draw criticism for doing too little too late, the media reports said. 

Reuters reported last year that Jordan had backed nationalising the bank, before the secret plan was dropped amid opposition from FINMA and Credit Suisse. Critics argue that he could have done more to commit publicly to saving the bank. 

Switzerland's finance ministry and the SNB declined to comment. 

FINMA said it had made intensive use of its instruments to deal with Credit Suisse over the years but that it was poorly equipped to intervene compared with international peers. 

"If Switzerland wants to have even more effective supervision, it needs new instruments and the ability to intervene earlier," its statement said. 

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