Credit Suisse seeks to soothe Swiss clients on UBS worries

BLOOMBERG 

Credit Suisse Group AG’s top executives in Switzerland sought to reassure local clients over worries stemming from the takeover by UBS Group AG, and underlined the importance that the domestic business has for the new combined bank.
The Swiss bank held a 45-minute webcast, hosted by Andre Helfenstein, chief executive of the Swiss business, and Roger Suter, head of private banking Switzerland. The executives apologised to clients who’d had difficulty joining the webcast due to capacity constraints.
“We would encourage you to keep your accounts with us; you know us and our service,” Helfenstein said, as he addressed concerns about other banks luring clients. “Competition never sleeps, which is a good thing.”
Earlier in March UBS agreed to buy Credit Suisse for 3 billion francs ($3.3 billion) in a deal brokered by the Swiss government, after the historic lender saw a collapse in confidence after years of management missteps and scandals. The combined entity is set to have a commanding presence in the domestic market, despite calls for a spin-off of the Swiss bank to preserve competition.
“We can only remain attractive to clients if perceived to be offering genuine value for money,” Suter said. “We also see lots of competition and that’s not going to disappear with the merger of UBS and Credit Suisse,” he added.
The Swiss parliament will hold an extraordinary session in the coming weeks to discuss issues including the market weight of the new entity. The pro-business Free Democrats have called for a public listing of the Swiss unit, though UBS Chairman Colm Kelleher has indicated his bank intends to hang on to the business.
“We need to be aware that not only for Credit Suisse but also for UBS, the Swiss business has major strategic importance, and therefore we will proceed with the merger on a very careful basis,” Helfenstein said.