Francesca McDonagh to remain at Credit Suisse as UBS completes takeover

Former Bank of Ireland chief executive Francesca McDonagh is to retain her role at Credit Suisse as rival UBS completes its takeover of the Swiss bank. Ms McDonagh is currently chief operating officer at the stricken financial institution.

UBS announced the departure of five of the most senior Credit Suisse executives just hours after sealing the official takeover of its Swiss rival.

Among those leaving are Dixit Joshi, chief financial officer, Markus Diethelm, general counsel, Edwin Low, head of the Asia-Pacific region, David Miller, co-head of the investment bank, and Ken Pang, co-head of markets.

The exits were disclosed in an internal memo and confirmed by UBS, which also revealed that Francesco De Ferrari, who had run Credit Suisse’s wealth management arm, will become a senior adviser to UBS wealth head Iqbal Khan.

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“The acquisition of Credit Suisse by UBS has now legally closed, marking a historic moment for both banks,” wrote Ulrich Körner, who has stayed on as chief executive of Credit Suisse, which will be run as a subsidiary of UBS during the integration process.

UBS’s rescue of Credit Suisse, which was engineered by Swiss authorities three months ago, was completed on Monday. The takeover is the most complicated bank merger since the financial crisis.

Speaking to Swiss television on Monday, UBS chief executive Sergio Ermotti said 10 per cent of Credit Suisse’s workforce had left in recent months.

Further job cuts are expected in the coming weeks, with Credit Suisse’s investment bank and its domestic business – should it be retained by UBS – expected to bear the brunt of redundancies.

In order to limit its risk from the transaction, UBS has set out almost two-dozen “red lines” for Credit Suisse staff to follow, which restrict certain activities such as bringing on new clients from high-risk countries and offering complex financial products.

UBS executives fear they are taking on a bank that has traditionally been much more willing to accept risky clients and offer them high-stakes products.

“We are worried about ‘cultural contamination’,” UBS chair Colm Kelleher said last month about taking on Credit Suisse staff. “We are going to have an incredibly high bar for who we bring into UBS.”

Among other Credit Suisse executives who have secured roles at UBS are Joanne Hannaford, former chief technology and operations officer, and former Credit Suisse chief risk officer David Wildermuth, who has been named chief risk officer for the Americas.

Michael Ebert, who co-led Credit Suisse’s investment bank with Mr Miller, has been made sole head of the business as well as head of the Americas for UBS’s investment bank.

Four Credit Suisse senior executives – head of human resources Christine Graeff, Swiss bank head André Helfenstein, chief operating officer Francesca McDonagh and chief compliance officer Nita Patel – have all retained their roles.

“While the transaction has closed, the most crucial phase is just beginning,” wrote Mr Kelleher and Mr Ermotti in a separate email to staff on Monday morning.

“We cannot cling to old rivalries, or be distracted by the integration and external pressures.”

[ UBS says it was rushed into unwanted Credit Suisse rescue merger ]

In a further email to UBS’s wealth management staff, Mr Khan said Yves-Alain Sommerhalder would run Credit Suisse’s wealth arm, while former Credit Suisse executive Jin Yee Young had returned, having joined Deutsche Bank at the start of the year, to be co-head of wealth management in Asia-Pacific.

“We will have combined market leadership in Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin America and the Middle East, and the power to rival the biggest players in the US market,” Mr Khan said. – Copyright the Financial Times Limited 2023