BERN, June 2 (Reuters) – UBS (UBSG.S) Chief Government Sergio Ermotti on Friday warned of painful choices about job cuts following the takeover of Credit score Suisse (CSGN.S), which he mentioned he hoped can be formalised in coming days.
“We cannot be capable of create, quick time period, job alternatives for everyone. Synergies is a part of the story,” Ermotti mentioned at an occasion organised by the Asset Administration Affiliation Switzerland in Bern.
“We have to take a severe take a look at the price base of the standalone and mixed organisations and create a sustainable end result,” he added. “It is going to be painful.”
Switzerland’s no. 1 financial institution, which agreed in March to take over its smaller Swiss rival as a part of a rescue orchestrated by Swiss authorities, has mentioned it aimed to shut the deal shortly.
“Hopefully within the subsequent few days it will be completed,” Ermotti mentioned on Friday. “We’re finalising the final the previous few miles … we’ve greater than 170 approvals from regulators.”
Ermotti, who led UBS from 2011 to 2020, returned as CEO in April to supervise the most important banking deal because the international monetary disaster.
Whereas he harassed it was a takeover and never a merger, Ermotti mentioned Credit score Suisse had many good folks and abilities, suggesting its executives might play a higher position within the mixed group than the preliminary management group unveiled final month would possibly point out. That administration reshuffle solely noticed Credit score Suisse CEO Ulrich Koerner becoming a member of the highest management.
“We could have a extra even distribution of jobs ..than the one I did myself,” he mentioned. “When the mud settles down …the very best factor for our purchasers and shareholders and our folks is to have the very best folks within the jobs.”
He additionally insisted that the brand new mixed entity, which could have a stability sheet of $1.6 trillion – roughly double the dimensions of Switzerland’s annual financial output – was not too giant for Switzerland.
Switzerland’s Social Democratic Celebration has drawn up proposals to shrink UBS belongings after its takeover of Credit score Suisse to scale back the danger of one other costly state-backed rescue.
“I do not assume we’re too massive for Switzerland,” Ermotti mentioned, including that in banking “dimension issues.”
Reporting by John Revill
Modifying by Tomasz Janowski
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