Credit Suisse chief executive Tidjane Thiam has resigned amid a power struggle which followed a spying scandal at the bank. Thiam is stepping down after five years at the Swiss bank just months after it emerged that two former employees had been placed under surveillance.
Mr Thiam said he did not know the spying was taking place.
His departure was to protect the bank’s reputation, Chairman Urs Rohner said, denying ill-feeling between the two.
The situation at the bank “became more difficult” over the past few weeks after a second case of spying emerged, Mr Rohner told Swiss radio.
“At some point we realized that we couldn’t get out of this situation unless we made a change and Tidjane Thiam understood that too,” he said.
Credit Suisse’s board has unanimously backed Mr Rohner, despite high profile pledges of support for Mr Thiam from key investors.
The surveillance scandal initially came to light in September when a probe found the bank’s former chief operating officer, Pierre-Olivier Bouée, had hired private detectives to track its former head of wealth management, Iqbal Khan.
Credit Suisse later admitted its former human resources head Peter Goerke had also been tailed, prompting an investigation by Swiss financial watchdog FINMA.
The bank’s board unanimously accepted Mr Thiam’s resignation. This week a number of shareholders in Credit Suisse such as Harris Associates had backed Mr Thiam to stay on as chief executive and for Mr Rohner to go.
On 5th February, Mr Thiam posted a smiling photo of himself on Instagram with Credit Suisse’s executive team. However, the bank’s board has thrown its support behind Mr Rohner.
Credit Suisse’s lead independent director Severin Schwan said: “After careful deliberations, the board has been unanimous in its actions, as well as in reaffirming its full support for the chairman to complete his term until April 2021.”
Mr Rohner told Swiss broadcaster SRF on 7th February: “I have spoken with many [shareholders], also with the big ones. Many have confirmed to me that they support the course of the board of directors.”
Mr Thiam will leave on 14 February and is being replaced by Thomas Gottstein, who is head of the bank’s Swiss business.
Relations between the chief executive and chairman had been increasingly strained following the spying scandal.
In a statement, Mr Thiam said: “I had no knowledge of the observation of two former colleagues. “It undoubtedly disturbed Credit Suisse and caused anxiety and hurt. I regret that this happened and it should never have taken place.”
Source: bbc.com
