ZURICH (Reuters) -Proxy adviser Glass Lewis urged Credit Suisse shareholders to oppose board member Andreas Gottschling’s re-election, on grounds that as risk committee chairman he should be held accountable for problems tied to Greensill and Archegos.
Switzerland’s second-biggest bank has been reeling from the collapses of Greensill Capital and Archegos Capital Management, with a 4.4 billion Swiss franc ($4.75 billion) charge hitting its balance sheet after Archegos failed to meet margin commitments.
The matters have prompted the bank to overhaul its asset management unit, responsible for $10 billion of supply chain finance funds which invested in bonds issued by Greensill, and to replace its head of investment banking, as well as its head of compliance and risk.
“To regain shareholder trust in light of the substantial financial and reputational damage that the company is facing as a result of the aforementioned matters, shareholders would be better served by a change in leadership of the risk committee,” Glass Lewis said in a report issuing recommendations to shareholders on Tuesday.
“While we note that the supply chain finance funds and US-based hedge fund matters…have only emerged in recent weeks and that investigations are likely still in preliminary stages, we believe that these issues cast significant doubt on the efficacy of the board’s oversight of the Company’s risk and control framework,” Glass Lewis added.
Credit Suisse declined to comment.
Gottschling did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent via LinkedIn.
Credit Suisse is due to hold its shareholders’ meeting on April 30.
(Reporting by Oliver Hirt and Silke Koltrowitz; editing by Brenna Hughes Neghaiwi and John Miller)
