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Historic day in Zurich-Oerlikon, the last ordinary General Assembly in Credit Suisse’s 167-year history. The mood in Hallenstadion heated up, the current 1748 small shareholder whistled towards Axel Lehmann (64), the Chairman of CS.
He apologizes right at the start of the Plenary Meeting – not for the fiasco that initially surrounded the urgent takeover of CS by UBS. But “due to the inconvenience at the entrance control” to the Hallenstadion. unrest in the ranks.
“I’m sorry to disappoint you”
But then, at 10.37 a.m., words Lehmann hadn’t heard in the past few weeks came out for the first time: “We wanted to turn the wheel for the better with all our might. This saddens me and I sincerely regret that the time was not there and our plans fell through after that deadly week in March. I apologize for disappointing you all, as we have not been able to stop the loss of confidence that has accumulated over the years.”
Lehmann speaks of the “pain, anger and shock” of those affected. And he’s trying to explain what led to Credit Suisse’s downfall.
Votes of existing shareholders
As expected, junior shareholders VR President Lehmann and CEO Ulrich Körner (60) are violently tearing the lid off. The first speaker, Mr. Röthlisberger, broke in: “Hello guys, see you again and I arrived today without a gun. The access controls were provocative. I wear a gray suit because I think people cross the gray zone. How much money do companies raise to create transparency for shareholders? I feel betrayed by these institutions.” So much money has been thrown away in the last few months. “As a shareholder, I feel awful.”
Shareholder and former CS employee Francesco de Giorgi: “You, Mr. Lehmann, have a duty to manage money responsibly and economically.” With the takeover, the Federal Council “nationalized” the CS owners, criticizing the shareholder. This sends a false signal to the world: “Your money is no longer safe.” This is the responsibility of the board of directors. “As a former employee and shareholder of CS, I am ashamed that I could not avoid this mess. I feel responsible for that.”
Another minor shareholder wants the losses incurred to be directly deductible from federal tax. Applause.
Other speakers have called for full disclosure of customer cash outflows since last fall at Credit Suisse. Shareholder representative Actares is calling for support for CS employees. Ethos criticizes the bonus culture of the old big bank, saying those responsible should be held accountable.
Protest and bitterness before the door opens
The security measures in front of the Hallenstadion are extensive. Small shareholders protest. “You really should throw it all away,” says one shareholder who lost a few thousand francs. His anger is directed at the current management of the former number two executive of the Swiss banking industry.
Another, Ueli Wegmann (79), of Frauenfeld TG, put much more money in the sand: “I lost 20,000 francs with CS shares, others even more.” She reconciled with him, even seems cheerful. He sees today as a “nice funeral” for the bank.
“It’s a swan song,” Ethos President Ruedi Rechsteiner (65) tells Blick TV. “We saw the destruction in slow motion.” The death of CS is a great disgrace to its Swiss and international reputation. Those responsible are no longer here. It’s a sad day for Switzerland.”
In the background, climate activists build a boat that reads “Crisis Suisse”. They placed it vertically to symbolize a sinking ship. (euro/sfa)
Blick TV is live from 7 am to 7 pm, you can now follow the historical event live on Blick.ch. As a reminder: tomorrow, Wednesday, it will be the turn of the UBS AGM in Basel. We also report live from there.
Source :Blick
I’m Tim David and I work as an author for 24 Instant News, covering the Market section. With a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism, my mission is to provide accurate, timely and insightful news coverage that helps our readers stay informed about the latest trends in the market. My writing style is focused on making complex economic topics easy to understand for everyone.
