Swiss parliament’s upper house approved 109 billion francs ($120 billion) in government guarantees for the takeover of Credit Suisse Group AG, paving the way for the lower house to begin debating the deal on Tuesday evening.
(Bloomberg) — Swiss parliament’s upper house approved 109 billion francs ($120 billion) in government guarantees for the takeover of Credit Suisse Group AG, paving the way for the lower house to begin debating the deal on Tuesday evening.
Ahead of the vote lawmakers blamed the government, regulators and the bank’s management for failures around the takeover last month, setting the stage for an election year in which thousands of jobs are at stake.
Though the legislative doesn’t have the power to derail the takeover, the extraordinary parliamentary meeting scheduled for three days starting Tuesday, is forcing the government into continued defense of its actions during the unpopular emergency takeover by UBS Group AG announced on March 19.
In that vein, Swiss President Alain Berset opened the lower-house debate after 7pm local time by saying Credit Suisse’s “negative spiral” spurred his government into action. Temporary nationalisation, a forced bankruptcy and orderly wind-down of the bank were all considered but rejected in favor of the UBS takeover, he said.
The government, Swiss National Bank and Swiss banking regulator Finma “acted in a decisive manner to restore confidence,” Berset said.
Earlier in the day, more than a dozen lawmakers in the upper house voiced their grievances. Their concerns varied from being circumvented in the emergency legislation, to regulatory lapses that allowed Credit Suisse’s failings to go un-addressed, to demanding accountability for the bank’s management.
“The legal possibilities against the bankers responsible and the possibilities to claw back bonuses need to be exhausted to the fullest extent,” said the president of the Free Democrats Thierry Burkart.
Some legislators called for greater powers for the financial regulator, Finma, amid a broader review of too-big-to-fail rules for the sector, while others asked for a parliamentary inquiry commission. Quick legislative changes are unlikely though, as became apparent during the debate.
The deal — described by Berset earlier as the best option to re-establish confidence in markets — created a banking giant whose assets are more than twice the size of the Swiss economy.
Job Cuts
Politicians and business leaders have voiced worries that the combined lender will have excessive market power, leading to a loss of competition. Despite the risks involved in integrating Credit Suisse, UBS stands to become a banking “powerhouse” post merger, analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. wrote in a note Tuesday.
UBS, already one of the world’s largest wealth managers, is now taking over a key rival for a fraction of the value of its assets and receiving as much as 9 billion Swiss francs ($9.9 billion) in government loss guarantees.
Finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter made clear that if these guarantees turned out to be not enough, it would be up to parliament to decide on an extension. The government and UBS agreed on the lender taking on the first 5 billion francs in potential losses, before the administration steps in for the next 9 billion.
Before the takeover, Credit Suisse had already planned to cut as many as 9,000 jobs worldwide over the coming years. The overlaps between the two banks’ businesses will likely lead to that number rising, though executives including UBS Chairman Colm Kelleher have said that it’s too early to say how big the cuts will be.
Local newspaper SonntagsZeitung reported earlier this month that as many as 11,000 jobs could be cut in Switzerland and another 25,000 globally as a result of the combination.
Finma
Finma didn’t move in time, said Heidi Z’graggen, upper-house member of the Center Alliance.
“Finma’s job is to protect shareholder rights and ensure functioning of the financial center,” she said. “At this, Finma failed.”
A parliamentary inquiry commission is necessary to answer whether the financial regulator, the Swiss National Bank and the finance ministry reacted properly, she said. Such a body would have subpoena powers to summon witnesses.
Given the merger has been met with little public enthusiasm, parliament is also trying to curtail government powers in the future: They are attempting to block the use of emergency measures to push through deals like this.
–With assistance from Paula Doenecke, Jeff Black and Allegra Catelli.
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