The American investment company Harris Associates, reference shareholder of Credit Suisse, is opposed to the departure of the general manager Thomas Gottstein, while the bank is in turmoil due to several cases.
“The board must decide whether Thomas (Gottstein) is capable of being a good managing director,” partner David Herro said in an article published Wednesday by the newspaper Finanz und Wirtschaft.
Mr. Gottstein, who had taken charge of Credit Suisse in early 2020 after the departure of Tidjane Thiam swept away by the spinning mills affair, had to face a double crisis, added the partner of Harris Associates. The latter holds a 5.17% stake in the bank with two sails.
It has indeed been confronted in quick succession with the debacles of the funds linked to Greensill and the Archegos investment fund, to which have been added several legal files. ‘It is therefore difficult to give him a note,’ conceded David Herro.
Unicredit not interested
Last week, the American pension fund Artisan Partners, which holds a 1.5% share in the Zurich bank, told Archyde.com that it was calling for the departure of the boss of Credit Suisse.
David Samra, director of Artisan Partners, had mentioned the sale of certain units, the listing of divisions on the stock market or a merger with another Swiss or American bank. These proposals were rejected by Mr. Herro, because Credit Suisse would be sold under its real value.
The general manager of the Italian bank Unicredit, Andrea Orcel, also rejected any merger with Credit Suisse, in an interview with the German-speaking magazine Bilanz to be published on Thursday. Generally speaking, unfriendly takeovers are very difficult in the banking sector, he added. A friendly solution would therefore be necessary or the scenario of a ‘white knight’ in the event of an attempted acquisition by a foreign group.
Mr Orcel also ruled out any return to Zurich, putting to rest rumors of him as Thomas Gottstein’s successor. ‘I am committed to this bank (Unicredit) and its employees and I want to bring it success,’ repeated the Italian boss.
/ATS