CS President Lehmann celebrated at a star lawyer’s party and was criticized for it

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Shouldn’t the president of a sick bank be attending a birthday party shortly before he went bankrupt, and wouldn’t they have better things to do? This is more than a rhetorical question. Because Credit Suisse President Axel Lehmann (64) was at the 55th birthday celebration of a star lawyer from Zurich on Wednesday, March 8th. On March 19, the federal government had to pull the emergency brake and UBS took over CS.

All this was still a long way off on March 8. A standing dinner was served for friends and acquaintances of the birthday boy, accompanied by a view of Lake Zurich. The guest list reads like who the Swiss business is. It was no surprise that Lehmann was invited, they know each other from business circles and are friends.

No celebration in times of crisis

Still, some guests frowned when Lehmann arrived to celebrate. Parties in crisis should not go, hence the attitude of the critics. Especially since he was definitely asked about the status of his bank on this occasion. Lehmann’s appearance was as pleasant and relatively relaxed as ever.

This Wednesday evening, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) knocked on CS’ door again, complaining about some figures from the past in the bank’s annual report. Result: CS had to delay the release of the report for several days.

The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) was still imminent. But the CS chairman must have at least suspected that the bank would not survive the next storm in the financial sector. This broke out a few days later when the SVB collapsed, and the crisis in the American banking sector spread to Switzerland.

“Not the best move”

Other guests at the celebration did not find the appearance particularly unusual. Lehmann stayed only a short while and said goodbye quickly. It is said that he turned down other invitations during these critical days. When asked by Blick, neither Axel Lehmann nor CS wanted to comment on it tonight.

Reputation expert Bernhard Bauhofer (60) has little understanding of the visit to the birthday party: “It certainly wasn’t an optimal move, it wasn’t appropriate. A look like this fits the picture for anyone who sees Lehmann as the wrong choice at the top of CS. »

Communications expert Beatrice Tschanz (78) doesn’t want to be so harsh on the CS president, after all, attending a birthday party is her private affair. “Axel Lehmann must have known this himself. For me it’s a matter of ethics and style.” Tschanz adds: “Personally, I wouldn’t go to the party.”

Tschanz is much more critical of Lehmann’s performance on March 19, when CS’ death was finalized in Bern and the CS President was unable to offer a single apology. But by then, the celebratory mood was long gone.

Source :Blick