2023-07-15 13:17:54
The Swiss newspaper “Aargauer Zeitung” said in a report that the parliamentary committee that will investigate the causes of the collapse of the ancient Credit Suisse bank will withhold its documents from publication for 50 years, which has raised concerns among Swiss historians about the transparency of the investigations.
The newspaper said the investigation committee would hand over its files, which include witness statements and documents, to the Swiss Federal Archives after much more than the usual 30-year period.
The Swiss parliament has not yet responded to a request for comment on the newspaper’s report.
In a letter to Isabelle Chasseau, chair of the parliamentary committee that will handle the investigation, Sascha Zala, president of the Swiss Society for History, expressed concern about the length of time.
“If researchers want to conduct a scientific investigation into the banking crisis of 2023, access to the Credit Suisse files will be invaluable,” the newspaper quoted Zala’s letter.
“In the best case, it should be possible for the archive to be made available and made available after the expiry of the appropriate period of protection and, if necessary, subject to historical research conditions,” he added.
The committee’s work will focus on the activities of the Swiss government, central bank and financial regulator in the run-up to the bank’s takeover of Credit Suisse by UBS in March.
The parliamentary commission of inquiry, the fifth of its kind in Swiss history, is free to call members of the government to testify.
The committee began its first meeting last Thursday, when it stressed the importance of confidentiality of its procedures.
Credit Suisse faced the risk of collapse when its share prices fell more than 30% during the trading session on March 15, following the collapse of three US regional banks.
The Swiss government, central bank and financial regulators then stepped in and forced UBS to launch a $3.25 billion takeover announced on March 19.
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