Credit Suisse has announced that it had lost some 67 billion Swiss francs (about $75 billion) in deposits in the first three months of the year.
According to the embattled Swiss lender, the money is still leaving the bank as the rival UBS scrambles to complete an emergency rescue of firm.
In Monday’s earnings report, Credit Suisse said that “these outflows, which were most acute in the days immediately preceding and following the announcement of the merger, stabilized to much lower levels, but had not yet reversed as of April 24, 2023.”
The developments come after the Swiss government announced late last month that it would provide urgent guarantee credits, amounting to 109 billion Swiss francs ($118 billion), for the Swiss National Bank (SNB) and UBS to take over Credit Suisse, a process that is due to be completed before the end of this year.
Earlier in March, the Swiss National Bank announced the acquisition of Credit Suisse by UBS, adding that it could grant UBS a liquidity assistance loan with privileged creditor status in bankruptcy for a total of up to 100 billion Swiss francs ($108 billion) after the takeover.
Credit Suisse had been hit by scandals and compliance failures over the past few years, which wiped out its profit and led to the bank losing clients.
In 2022, the media leak dubbed "Suisse Secrets" contained info that one of the world's most iconic private banks managed accounts for human rights abusers, fraudsters, and businessmen who were placed under sanctions.
After a German newspaper shared the data with the non-profit journalist group Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, as well as almost 50 media organizations globally, the journalists spent months studying the information.
Their probe suggested that Credit Suisse accounts had been used by clients involved in such serious crimes as torture, drug trafficking, money laundering, and corruption. According to the inquiry, account holders included a Yemeni spy chief, Venezuela's former Vice Energy Minister Nervis Villalobos, and the sons of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.