Credit Suisse is planning to cut 9,000 jobs and raise 4 billion Swiss francs, including 1.5 billion Swiss francs from the Saudi National Bank next month, as part of a company-wide overhaul to recover from the £3.5bn loss.
A headcount reduction of 2,700 employees is already under way in the fourth quarter. The bank said it was shedding 2,700 full-time staff, accounting for about a third of its planned cuts and a fifth of its 52,000 global employees. By the end of 2025, the bank expects to have around 43,000 full-time-equivalent staff, down from around 52,000, using natural attrition and targeted job cuts.
The restructuring plans are expected to cost about 2.9 billion Swiss francs over the next year that will be funded by dumping some of its investments, selling portions of its business, and raising fresh money from investors. The Saudi National Bank said it planned to take part in the fundraising to support the establishment of an independent investment bank focused on advisory and capital markets activities.
It is also spinning off its investment banking business into a new unit rebranded as CS First Boston, which will be “more global and broader than boutiques, but more focused than bulge bracket players”. The spin-off will be funded by outside investors while retaining a client relationship with the Swiss bank. The capital raise at Credit Suisse has already begun via an issue of new shares to investors, including Saudi National Bank, which plans to invest up to 1.5 billion francs for a stake of up to 9.9%.
