Current:Home > reviewsUBS finishes takeover of Credit Suisse in deal meant to stem global financial turmoil -Wealth Nexus Pro
UBS finishes takeover of Credit Suisse in deal meant to stem global financial turmoil
View
Date:2025-04-26 19:33:52
BERLIN — UBS said Monday that it has completed its takeover of embattled rival Credit Suisse, nearly three months after the Swiss government hastily arranged a rescue deal to combine the country's two largest banks in a bid to safeguard Switzerland's reputation as a global financial center and choke off market turmoil.
A statement from the bank said that "UBS has completed the acquisition of Credit Suisse today, crossing an important milestone."
UBS had said last week that it expected to complete the acquisition worth 3 billion Swiss francs ($3.3 billion) as early as Monday.
It's a pivotal moment for the two Zurich-based rivals, whose combination has raised concerns about thousands of expected job losses, drawn rebukes and lawsuits over the terms of the deal, and stirred fears about the impact of creating a Swiss megabank that would be too big to fail.
"This is a very important moment — not just for UBS, (but) for Switzerland as a financial location and for Switzerland as a country," UBS CEO Sergio Ermotti said on Friday. "So we do feel the responsibility, but we are fully motivated."
Ermotti, who returned to UBS to push through the deal, acknowledged that "the coming months will certainly be bumpy" but said the bank was "very focused on doing on it right."
The Swiss government orchestrated the rescue of Credit Suisse over a weekend in March after the lender's stock plunged and customers quickly pulled out their money, fearing its collapse could further roil global financial markets in the wake of the failure of two U.S. banks.
The 167-year-old Swiss bank had seen a string of scandals over the years that hit the heart of its business, ranging from bad bets on hedge funds to failing to prevent money laundering by a Bulgarian cocaine ring and accusations it didn't report secret offshore accounts that wealthy Americans used to avoid paying U.S. taxes.
UBS will inherit ongoing cases against Credit Suisse and the financial repercussions those entail, including a recent ruling in Singapore that said Credit Suisse owes former Georgian Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili hundreds of millions of dollars for failing to protect the billionaire's money in a trust pilfered by a manager.
Credit Suisse is appealing that and a similar case in Bermuda, where Ivanishvili says a bank subsidiary failed to prevent "fraudulent mismanagement" of his assets in two life insurance policies.
Switzerland's government has agreed to provide UBS with 9 billion Swiss francs (nearly $10 billion) in guarantees to cover any losses it may face from the takeover after UBS covers any hits up to 5 billion francs ($5.5 billion).
That emergency rescue plan is facing political pushback ahead of parliamentary elections in October. Switzerland's lower house has rebuked it in a symbolic vote, and lawmakers have approved setting up an inquiry into the deal and the events leading up to it. The Swiss attorney general's office already has opened a probe.
Credit Suisse investors also have sued the country's financial regulators after about 16 billion Swiss francs ($17.7 billion) in higher-risk bonds were wiped out.
The U.S. Federal Reserve, the European Union's executive branch and others worldwide have signed off on the takeover. Credit Suisse was classified as one of 30 globally significant banks because its collapse posed a wider risk to the financial system.
veryGood! (7)
Related
- Whoopi Goldberg is delightfully vile as Miss Hannigan in ‘Annie’ stage return
- Hougang murder: Victim was mum of 3, moved to Singapore to provide for family
- Austin Tice's parents reveal how the family coped for the last 12 years
- Stock market today: Asian shares retreat, tracking Wall St decline as price data disappoints
- Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
- Small plane crashes onto New York highway, killing 1 person and injuring another
- Krispy Kreme's 'Day of the Dozens' offers 12 free doughnuts with purchase: When to get the deal
- Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow owns a $3 million Batmobile Tumbler
- Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
- Atmospheric river and potential bomb cyclone bring chaotic winter weather to East Coast
Ranking
- FACT FOCUS: Inspector general’s Jan. 6 report misrepresented as proof of FBI setup
- 'Vanderpump Rules' star DJ James Kennedy arrested on domestic violence charges
- As a Major California Oil Producer Eyes Carbon Storage, Thousands of Idle Wells Await Cleanup
- San Diego raises bar to work with immigration officials ahead of Trump’s deportation efforts
- Are Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp down? Meta says most issues resolved after outages
- Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow owns a $3 million Batmobile Tumbler
- Rebecca Minkoff says Danny Masterson was 'incredibly supportive to me' at start of career
- 'Vanderpump Rules' star DJ James Kennedy arrested on domestic violence charges
Recommendation
'Vanderpump Rules' star DJ James Kennedy arrested on domestic violence charges
Pakistan ex
Social media platform Bluesky nearing 25 million users in continued post
Friend for life: Mourning dog in Thailand dies at owner's funeral
Person accused of accosting Rep. Nancy Mace at Capitol pleads not guilty to assault charge
Is that Cillian Murphy as a zombie in the '28 Years Later' trailer?
CEO shooting suspect Luigi Mangione may have suffered from spondylolisthesis. What is it?
Highlights from Trump’s interview with Time magazine