(Bloomberg) Credit Suisse Group AG Chairman Axel Lehmann apologized to shareholders for failing to stem a loss of trust in the bank that he said had built up well before he took over. “We failed to stem the impact of legacy scandals, and counter negative headlines with positive facts,” Lehmann said in remarks prepared for the bank’s annual shareholder meeting in Zurich. In the end, “the bank could not be saved.” The public mea culpa comes as shareholders confront leadership over the historic takeover by larger rival UBS Group AG that marks the end of Credit Suisse after 167 years. The 3 billion-franc ($3.3 billion) deal was sealed last month to put an end to a crisis of confidence after years or scandals, losses and failures in risk management. Fragile investor sentiment around banking was further hurt by the failure of Silicon Valley Bank. Credit Suisse’s Fate Sealed by Regulators Days Before UBS Deal The deal was agreed without the approval of either Credit Suisse or UB
Axel Lehmann was narrowly reelected as the last chairman of an independent Credit Suisse Group AG and shareholders rejected the compensation for the executive board, at the end of an emotional final annual meeting for the Swiss lender.
The speed with which four banks collapsed - and one continues to struggle - has left investors reeling. While the failures came in the span of just 11 days, the scenarios that brought them down were each unique.