Credit Suisse hit by £74bn of withdrawals

Credit Suisse clients have withdrawn billions of pounds from the ailing bank in just over a month as fears for the future mount.

In another grim day for the beleaguered lender, bosses revealed that £74 billion had been withdrawn between the end of September and 11 November.

This included £56bn from the asset management arm and £4.6bn from the domestic Swiss bank as concerns over international clients spread to home countries.

The figures were released as Credit Suisse warned it was on track to make a £1.3bn loss in the fourth quarter, putting it £3bn in the red for the full year.

The bank, which is seeking to dramatically shake up its structure following its involvement in a series of scandals, said cash flows out in the first two weeks of October were “significantly higher than rates made in the third quarter of 2022.” .

When it announced its third-quarter results earlier this month, it blamed the desertion on “negative press and social media coverage based on false rumors.”

Filming had been delayed since then, it added yesterday.

But Credit Suisse’s reputation has been tarnished by its role in a series of scandals, from an espionage debacle and the former chairman’s disregard for Covid rules, to the collapse of financial services company Greensill and hedge fund Archegos Capital.

Yesterday, the bank received approval from its shareholders to proceed with a £3.5bn fundraising effort to secure its future.

Chairman Axel Lehmann said the shareholder vote “marks another important step in our journey to build the new Credit Suisse.”

He added that the approval “confirms confidence in the strategy, as we presented it in October, and we are fully focused on delivering on our strategic priorities to lay the foundations for future profitable growth.”

Credit Suisse said last month that Saudi Arabia’s largest bank supported its fundraising efforts.

It said it would also cut costs by 15 percent, cutting 9,000 of its 52,000 employees over the next three years, including 2,700 in 2022.

It plans to slim down its beleaguered investment bank, revive the CS First Boston brand it first acquired in 1988, and divest its dealmaking and advisory business under the name.

Credit Suisse said yesterday that its investment bank was “particularly affected by the significant industry-wide slowdown in capital markets and reduced activity in its sales and trading activities.”

Kian Abouhossein, an analyst at JP Morgan, said the bank is “not out of the woods yet in terms of stabilizing the franchise.”