Credit Suisse shares sink as top shareholder rules out more cash

PARIS: Credit Suisse’s shares plunged to fresh lows on Wednesday as its main shareholder said it would not provide more financial assistance to the embattled Swiss banking giant.

“The answer is absolutely not, for many reasons outside the simplest reason which is regulatory and statutory,” Saudi National Bank Chairman Ammar Al Khudairy said in an interview with Bloomberg TV.

The lender’s shares were down more than 15 percent in late morning trading.

Credit Suisse’s market value already fell further this week over fears of contagion from the collapse of two US banks and its annual report citing “material weaknesses” in internal controls.

Credit Suisse has endured a barrage of problems in recent years, including its exposure to the implosions of US asset manager Archegos and UK firm Greensill in 2021.

The bank booked a net loss of 7.3 billion Swiss francs ($7.8 billion) for the 2022 financial year.

That came against a backdrop of massive withdrawals of funds by its clients, including in the wealth management sector — one of the activities on which the bank intends to refocus as part of a major restructuring plan.