Swiss watchdog to monitor Credit Suisse strategy rollout

ZURICH (Reuters) – Credit Suisse has taken measures to reduce risks and improve its capital situation, Swiss banking supervisor FINMA said on Thursday after the bank unveiled a sweeping overhaul.

“It is clear that FINMA will continue to monitor that all the supervisory requirements are met during the implementation phase of the new strategy,” it said in an emailed statement in response to a Reuters query.

Credit Suisse had said earlier that it had experienced significantly higher withdrawals of deposits in the first two weeks of October “following negative press and social media coverage based on incorrect rumors”. These outflows had since stabilized to much lower levels.

“While these outflows have partially utilized liquidity buffers at the Group and legal entity level, and we have fallen below certain legal entity-level regulatory requirements, the core requirements of the liquidity coverage ratio (LCR) and the net stable funding ratio (NSFR) at the Group level have been maintained at all times,” the bank said.

Asked about the liquidity situation, FINMA said: “The general principle is that (liquidity) buffers are there to be used in appropriate situations. That is precisely why they are built up. And that is what the legislator intended them to be used for.

“It is clear that a credible plan must exist for how the buffers can be replenished within a reasonable period.”

(Reporting by Michael Shields; Editing by Noele Illien)