Credit Suisse has drawn up plans to split its investment bank in three and resurrect a “bad bank” holding pen for risky assets, as the Swiss lender attempts to emerge from three years of relentless scandals.
Under proposals put forward to the group’s board, Credit Suisse hopes to sell profitable units such as its securitised products business in a bid to stave off a damaging capital raise, according to people familiar with the plans.
Chair Axel Lehmann installed Ulrich Körner as chief executive in the summer with a brief to carry out a radical shake-up of the bank, which has been hit by a corporate spying scandal, investment fund closures, a record trading loss and a litany of lawsuits in recent years.