Credit Suisse bids above rivals for rich clients as bankers exit

CREDIT Suisse Group is escalating efforts to win back clients with deposit rates that are significantly higher than rivals as a run of senior banker departures adds urgency to its campaign to recoup assets.

After unprecedented outflows in the fourth quarter, the Zurich-based lender has raised three-month rates to as much as about 6.5 per cent for new money of US$5 million and above in Asia, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified discussing private information.

That’s close to 100 basis points more than what Credit Suisse offered in December, and is a premium on rivals including UBS Group, JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup in the region, the people said. The Swiss bank is also offering deposit rates that are a step above rivals in Switzerland, one of the people said.

The push goes beyond measures in December, when the bank lowered a threshold on balances entitled to an interest rate of 5 per cent to 6 per cent, people familiar with the matter had said.

The jumbo rates underscore the need to recover from outflows which topped US$100 billion last quarter as Credit Suisse grapples with a steady drumbeat of senior departures in wealth management, who will soon be trying to take assets to their new employers.

And while short-term interest rates are rising more broadly as the Federal Reserve and other central banks tighten monetary policy, not all banks are raising deposit rates as quickly.

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At least a dozen private bankers at the managing director-level and above have left Credit Suisse in Singapore and Hong Kong since September, or are planning to leave. Some senior bankers that left handled at least US$1 billion in client assets, and are likely to take at least a quarter of the funds they manage to their new employers, rising to as much as 60 per cent in some cases, according to people familiar with the hires.

The outflows have also upped pressure on wealth head Francesco de Ferrari, just over a year into the job, to restore stability and bring back assets.

The business of managing money for the rich in Asia has been a major part of Credit Suisse’s growth efforts since a broader reorganisation by former chief executive officer Tidjane Thiam in 2015 that also sought to scale back the securities unit.

In the Middle East, departures of relationship managers, along with job cuts, are making recouping assets more difficult, one of the people said.

“The banking sector has been responding to global rate hikes with higher rates and Credit Suisse is fully focused on providing our clients with differentiated advice and competitive solutions,” a spokesperson said in an emailed statement. Representatives of other banks declined to comment.

Among the senior wealth exits in Asia are Young Jin Yee who left Credit Suisse last year as the Swiss bank’s No 2 for wealth management in the region to join Deutsche Bank. Top Indonesia wealth banker Johanes Oeni is also leaving to join the German lender. One of Credit Suisse’s top China private bankers, David Louie, is leaving the bank to join smaller Swiss rival EFG International.

Surprise outflows

The full scale of the fourth quarter exodus of client money surprised analysts and left the bank’s chairman facing a probe over comments he made that the firm had put a stop to them in early December, before the quarter’s end. chief executive officer Ulrich Koerner’s pledge to stem the decline now hinges on a massive client outreach programme to woo nervous clients and their cash back to the bank.

Elsewhere, Credit Suisse dialled back some stringent anti-money laundering controls in Asia after they drew protests from clients and bankers and contributed to staff departures.

The bank’s assets managed for wealthy clients, excluding the Swiss bank, tumbled to 540.5 billion Swiss francs (S$772.8 billion) at the end of December, from 742.6 billion francs a year ago, contributing to a second consecutive annual loss. BLOOMBERG