Swiss bank Credit Suisse has announced plans to alter its legal structure, making it easier to break up the bank in the event of a major crisis. The approval of the Swiss regulator is still needed, but changes could start from mid-2015.
In a statement on Thursday, Credit Suisse said it would separate units in Switzerland, Britain and the United States to more closely align the booking of investment-banking business to regions where it originates.
The change will mainly affect wealth management, retail, corporate and institutional clients and the Swiss products and sales arm of the business.
UBS preceded today’s announcement back in October, when it too said it was setting up a new Swiss subsidiary within the same time frame.
A too-big-to-fail law for Switzerland’s most important banks was voted in after the government bailout of UBS at the height of the financial crisis in 2008.
The effect was to make it easier to break up large financial institutions facing severe difficulties.