How UBS Can Turn a Wake for Credit Suisse Into a Party
The fate of the combined Swiss domestic bank holds the key to satisfying the naysayers
A serious and somber Colm Kelleher, chairman of UBS Group AG
Photographer: Stefan Wermuth/Bloomberg
Colm Kelleher sounded like he was presiding over a funeral. The chairman of UBS Group AG struck a somber tone at the bank’s annual shareholder meeting on Wednesday, especially for someone who has just snagged potentially one of the biggest bargains ever in global banking.
Such seriousness is needed to keep its rescue of Credit Suisse Group AG on track in the face of a skeptical Swiss public and angry investors. The executives of both banks and leaders of Swiss authorities have put up a united front. Axel Lehmann, Credit Suisse’s chairman, toed the official line at that bank’s annual meeting Tuesday. “Ultimately, there were only two options: ‘deal’ or ‘bankruptcy,’” he told shareholders.