Credit Suisse cuts senior bank jobs in Asia, including in Singapore, as overhaul begins

HONG KONG – Credit Suisse Group has started

cutting senior bank jobs in Asia,

including three managing directors across investment banking and financing, as the Swiss giant carries out its plan to reduce global headcount by 9,000, sources familiar with the matter said.

Among the bankers let go were Mr Johnson Chui, Asia-Pacific head of equity capital markets, Ms Karen Yap from the financing group, and Ms Tan Ee-lin, head of ratings advisory, the people said, asking not to be identified because they are not authorised to speak publicly. 

The departures also include Mr Kuvesh Pather, the head of trading for the financing group in Australia, at least two Singapore-based bankers from the same group, and two directors from investment banking and capital markets, the sources said. 

A Singapore-based spokesman at Credit Suisse declined to comment. The three managing directors and Mr Pather did not respond to messages seeking comment.

The Swiss lender is undergoing a sweeping overhaul, seeking to shave 2.5 billion francs (S$3.63 billion) off its cost base. As part of the plan, the bank has said it started 2,700 job cuts in the fourth quarter and is aiming to reduce about 9,000 positions by 2025.

The cuts in Asia come after deal-making in China, one of its biggest growth markets, slumped and the bank posted mark-to-market losses in its financing group for the region.

Meanwhile, Mr Vik Bali, Credit Suisse’s chief operating officer of private banking for South Asia, has quit, said the people. Mr Bali did not respond to a request for comment.

Credit Suisse warned last month that it will probably record its fifth straight loss this quarter due to costs related to the revamp. The firm has announced a raft of changes, including the sale of its securitised products group and a capital increase as chief executive Ulrich Koerner seeks to put an end to years of scandals and management missteps. BLOOMBERG