Facing headwinds, Credit Suisse aims to double its share of private banking in Brazil

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Zurich-based Credit Suisse plans to double its share of the Brazilian private banking market within five years, says Francesco de Ferrari, member of the Executive Board, Global CEO of Wealth Management, and CEO of Europe, Middle East, and Africa division.

The manager took over as head of the Swiss bank’s wealth management division in February 2022 and told Valor in an interview that Brazil was one of his first trips in the job.

According to Ferrari, the group’s wealth management division manages more than US$1.5 trillion in assets worldwide. Even from a global perspective, he says Brazil occupies a strategic place for the group.

“The macroeconomic environment and what is happening with commodities make a [global] scenario very interesting for the Brazilian economy. For the executive, “wealth is increasingly being created in emerging markets and increasingly driven by entrepreneurs.”

CREDIT SUISSE FACES HEADWINDS

Credit Suisse was downgraded by rating agencies for the second time this week: Fitch cut the Swiss bank’s rating to BBB+ from A-, following a similar move by Standard & Poor’s (S&P).

This further increases pressure on the second-largest Swiss bank, which has been criticized for a series of losses and scandals.

Fitch pointed to execution risks as the bank tried to recover from adverse events that pointed to weaknesses in its risk and leadership culture and led to significant executive departures.

“The downgrade reflects Fitch’s view that Credit Suisse’s weak operating profitability relative to peers highlights execution risk during the group’s restructuring in a difficult market environment and points to challenges for the bank to improve its performance over the next 24 months, as well as for its risk governance,” Fitch Ratings said in a statement Wednesday.

Fitch changed the outlook from negative to stable.

The move follows a downgrade by S&P on Tuesday, which lowered its credit rating to BBB from BBB+.

The downgrades widened the gap between Credit and its main peers, including UBS, rated A- and stable outlook by S&P and A+ and stable outlook by Fitch.

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