Credit Suisse revamp progress buys CEO breathing room on capital

Zurich

THE "massive progress" Credit Suisse Group AG has made in its restructuring efforts has given the firm enough breathing room to consider alternative capital-raising options beyond a longstanding plan to list part of its Swiss bank unit, its chief executive officer said.

Advances that Switzerland's second-largest lender had made in the past 12 months included US$1.9 billion of cost cuts, a higher capital ratio and a settlement with the US Justice Department over its sales of toxic mortgage debt, CEO Tidjane Thiam said in an interview with Bloomberg Television on Tuesday. While there will be more job cuts this year and next, he signalled the worst may be over for headcount reduction.