Credit Suisse Chairman Axel Lehmann said he was “deeply sorry” for failing to save Switzerland’s second-largest bank from angry shareholders. They responded by refusing to ratify executive compensation.
“It was an assembly with a lot of emotions”, reacted to Agence France-Presse (AFP), Vincent Kaufmann, the director of the Ethos foundation, which represents pension funds in Switzerland. A last meeting with the shareholders, which is also, “somewhere, a funeral of one of the jewels of the Swiss economy”.
The board of directors made “a mea culpa”, he conceded, while stressing that many questions remained unanswered. In particular concerning “the restitution” of the premiums of the former leaders and the possible complaints that the board of directors could bring against them.
The chairman of the board of directors, Axel Lehmann, who had been called to the rescue at the beginning of 2022 to try to turn the bank around, apologized, saying he understood “the bitterness, the anger and the shock” of the shareholders, who saw their savings soar.
The 167-year-old bank that helped build Switzerland’s economic miracle will disappear. The takeover, unveiled on March 19 by the President of the Confederation, will be carried out by its rival UBS for 3 billion francs (4.45 billion dollars) under pressure from the Swiss authorities, who feared a total collapse.
“I am deeply sorry”
“We wanted to put all our energy and effort into turning the situation around. It pains me that we didn’t have time to do so, and in that fateful week in March our plans were thwarted. And for that, I am deeply sorry,” Lehmann said, promising to do everything to ensure “a smooth transition” with UBS.
But these words were not enough to comfort the 1748 shareholders who came in person to express their frustration, their anger, or simply to witness this historic moment.
During a vote on the fixed remuneration, the shareholders sanctioned the leaders to the purse. They had already given up their bounty; the vote on fixed remuneration obtained only 48.43% of votes in favor (and 48.21% against), not passing the bar of the necessary 50%.
For five hours, the shareholders followed one another on the platform to multiply the reproaches, without cries or boos, except for a brief outburst of voices.
“I’m wearing a red tie because I’m red with anger,” said the first responder without losing his calm. “The action is barely worth the price of a candy”, launched a small holder.
Outside, environmental organizations had erected a ship’s hull — the Crisis Switzerland — symbolizing the sinking bank.
“I lost 10,000 Swiss francs ($14,845),” Stephan Denzler told AFP. “For my family, it’s a lot of money,” he explains. Sometimes I laugh about it, other times I’m very angry. »
“I find it a scandal what the federal government has done with its decision to invoke a state of emergency”, launches AFP Albert Keel who, like all the others, was deprived of the vote. on the takeover of his bank by the government in the name of the best interests of the financial centre.
“I bought recently and I lost everything”, explains this shareholder – “a six-figure sum” -, betting on the success of the restructuring plan presented in the fall.
Responsible, guilty?
For Jeanne Martin, coordinator of general meetings at ShareAction – an organization that campaigns for responsible investments – it was “important that this general meeting be held, to carry the voice of civil society”.
Over the course of the scandals, the action of Credit Suisse had lost 80% of its value in two years, but its fall suddenly accelerated on March 15 (until minus 30%) in the face of the loss of confidence of investors and donors.
Despite the derisory price achieved by the title, shareholders will only receive the equivalent of 0.76 francs ($1.13) per share, or just 0.59% of its closing value after a chaotic week on the stock market.
The General Assembly of Credit Suisse barely ended, the attention turns to UBS, which holds its general meeting on Wednesday in Basel.