UBS CEO defends share buybacks, pushes back against capital proposals
Sergio Ermotti says that although the integration of Credit Suisse is ‘practically complete’, the regulatory debate has yet to be resolved
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[ZURICH] UBS chief executive Sergio Ermotti has defended the bank’s new US$3 billion share buyback programme and pushed back against government proposals for the lender to hold more capital.
Ermotti told news portal Schweiz Heute in an interview published on Thursday (Jul 30) that UBS had not pushed to relocate to the United States to avoid stricter capital rules, adding he had no intention to step aside to become chairman, at least in the near future.
Although the integration of Credit Suisse was “practically complete”, the regulatory debate had yet to be resolved, he said. UBS was now focussed on growth plans and technology initiatives such as AI.
“The chairman of the board and I have made it clear that a resignation is not on the table in the foreseeable future,” Ermotti noted. “There are many important questions to be clarified, and I am working on them together with the management and the board of directors.”
Ermotti, who returned to lead UBS in 2023 to oversee the Credit Suisse takeover, dismissed suggestions shareholders would like him to become chairman when the integration is complete. “I am CEO and Colm Kelleher is chairman of the board and that will remain the case for the time being,” he told the news site.
He also renewed his criticism of the government’s plan to require UBS to hold additional Common Equity Tier 1 capital, a measure designed to reduce the risk the bank would pose to the Swiss economy if it ran into difficulty.
The government has said the extra sum would be US$20 billion, while UBS has said the figure would likely be US$22 billion.
“We consider it extreme,” Ermotti said. “Twenty-two billion is a lot of money. It’s capital that would be tied up unused and wouldn’t benefit anyone.”
Defending the new buyback, Ermotti said that shareholders should participate in the business success, while buybacks were more flexible than dividends, which were difficult to cut if capital was needed elsewhere.
Asked whether relocating to the United States was no longer under consideration, Ermotti replied: “We never brought this into play.” REUTERS
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