Saudi National Bank chairman resigns after Credit Suisse comment that sparked turmoil

Ammar Al Khudairy had made clear that the Saudi National Bank would not invest more in Credit Suisse, sending its shares plunging. PHOTO: REUTERS

DUBAI Mr Ammar Al Khudairy, the chairman of Credit Suisse Group’s largest shareholder whose comments helped spark a slump in the Swiss lender’s shares that ultimately led to its takeover by UBS, has resigned.

He is leaving “due to personal reasons” and will be replaced by chief executive Saeed Mohammed Al Ghamdi, according to a statement on Monday. 

Speaking in an interview with Bloomberg TV on March 15, Mr Al Khudairy said “absolutely not” when asked if Saudi National Bank would be open to further investments in Credit Suisse if there was another call for additional liquidity.

The Swiss bank’s stock plunged to the lowest level on record, and its credit spreads surged following his comments. That helped drag all European banks lower as investors shied away from risk following the collapse of three lenders in the United States.

Days later, UBS agreed to buy Credit Suisse in a historic, government-brokered deal aimed at containing a crisis of confidence that had started to spread across global financial markets.

UBS will pay 3 billion francs (S$4.4 billion) for its rival in an all-share deal that includes extensive government guarantees and liquidity provisions.

Saudi National Bank, which is 37 per cent owned by the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund, acquired a roughly 9.9 per cent stake in Credit Suisse for 1.4 billion francs in 2022 as the anchor investor in its capital raise.

Mr Al Khudairy became chairman of the Saudi bank in 2021 when it was created via a merger of National Commercial Bank and Samba Financial Group.

Born in 1963, he spent his career in Saudi Arabia’s financial sector running some of the kingdom’s top institutions. He had been chairman of Goldman Sachs Group and Morgan Stanley in Saudi Arabia.

Mr Al Khudairy also founded alternative assets management business Amwal AlKhaleej and Amwal Capital Partners, based in Riyadh and Dubai.

Separately, Saudi National Bank appointed Talal Ahmed Al Khereiji as acting chief executive. He was previously deputy CEO and head of wholesale banking at the Saudi lender. BLOOMBERG

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