Due to racism allegations: CS Thiam’s explosive Whatsapp intervention

Probably from his surroundings, details of the wild chases in downtown Zurich have reached the public. The scandal surfaced and led to multiple layoffs, one suicide, several criminal cases and a regulatory investigation by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority.

The background to the scandal was covered in two investigative reports. The first comes from Thomas Werlen, a Zurich lawyer hired by Finma to deal with the Spygate case. Based on his recommendations, the authority then launched a formal investigation, a so-called enforcement procedure.

Although the contents of the investigations are officially kept secret, various details from the reports have been made public in recent years. But, as Sunday’s Blick survey showed, one explosive incident has remained a mystery to this day: the dismissal of a CS employee in Geneva who was said to have racially insulted then-CEO Tidjane Thiam (60) and her family. When the Franco-Ivorian heard this, he is said to have arranged for the employee to be fired.

He is said to have entrusted this delicate task especially to his colleague Lara Warner (56). He is said to have instructed the man to take personal responsibility for his dismissal and to do so outside of official channels, she said. She is said to have told him “send private Whatsapp”. Warner traveled to Geneva and confronted the allegations in a private conversation with the employee. She vehemently denied everything—but she still had to leave the bank. Thiam and Warner were close friends. In 2015, he was promoted to the Head of Compliance and Legislation and brought him to the Executive Board. He became chief risk officer in 2019.

Inadequate decision-making processes

In October 2021, more than two years after the Spygate incident became known, Finma completed the enforcement proceedings for the “shadow incident”. He noted in a press release that “there are serious organizational deficiencies linked to surveillance activities” at Credit Suisse. Activities were also placed “not remotely” with appropriate and documented decision-making processes and an appropriate control environment.

Finma only refers to acts of shadowing in his official communication. The supervisory authority does not mention the Geneva case. A Finma spokesperson declined to comment on the content of Friday’s trial. Therefore, it should remain clear whether the way the employee was fired and communications made through private channels pose a potential regulatory issue in Finma’s eyes.

Tidjane Thiam stepped down as head of Credit Suisse in February 2020. His successor was Thomas Gottstein (59). Interestingly, Lara expanded Warner’s responsibilities and promoted her to Head of Risk and Compliance.

It is unclear whether Finma was aware of the Geneva case at the time. In December 2019, the authority appointed Thomas Werlen as external auditor after it had already launched its own investigations.

Looks like the agency didn’t have an arrangement problem with Lara Warner. A bank’s top executives—the board of directors and management—must always fulfill the so-called guarantee for the smooth running of the business. A senior executive’s days are numbered if Finma concludes that there is a warranty issue.

Werlen’s research revealed that Credit Suisse not only followed Iqbal Khan, but also planned a total of seven cases and conducted a large amount of observations. Between 2015-2019, board members in Switzerland and other employees and third parties abroad were marred in two lawsuits.

As SonntagsBlick can learn, one of the cases is that Tamedia newspapers uncovered in 2021. Accordingly, the bank planned to follow Thiam’s girlfriend’s ex-husband in Hong Kong. It is unclear whether the observation was made and how intensively it was carried out.

The newspaper claimed that it was likely at the time that Thiam was aware of the shadowing plans. There is a suspicion that he may have mixed his private life with the activities of the bank.

Similar questions arise regarding the dismissal of the Geneva employee who was said to have insulted Thiam with racism. SonntagsBlick asked Tidjane Thiam to explain what happened at the time. One WhatsApp message went unanswered. There was also no response from a spokesperson for financial boutique Freedom Acquisition.

*Journalist Beat Schmid writes about finances in Sunday’s Blick newspaper. Tippinpoint.ch is the publisher of the online media.