Standard Chartered’s private banking business had frequently been mentioned as an option for Credit Suisse to buy. CEO Bill Winters has now taken a firm stance on the issue – at a Credit Suisse conference.

Standard Chartered, the U.K. bank with its strong business in Asia, Africa and the Middle East, isn’t for sale and speculation to that end are entirely false. These were the words of its CEO, Bill Winters, at an investor conference of Credit Suisse in Hong Kong this week.

The Swiss bank repeatedly was mentioned as a potential buyer of the rival bank. The private banking business with some $60 billion in assets under management would have given the Asian division of Credit Suisse a welcome boost.

Not the Swiss, and Not the Chinese Either

It’s not going to happen though, as Winters pointed out. A sale to a Chinese bank is also not an option, he added. His bank is only just embarking on a restructuring program that will take years to complete and cost billions. The company had slipped into the red in 2015.

Winters wants to put the bank back on track and increase the company’s share price. To sell parts or all of the business now would be a big shame, the banker said. Winters took over at the helm of the bank in 2015 after a career spanning 26 years at U.S. investment bank J.P. Morgan. He had lost against Jamie Dimon and left the U.S. bank in 2009.

At one time, he reportedly was in the running as CEO of UBS, but Swiss manager Sergio Ermotti eventually was appointed.

Profitable at Last

Standard Chartered in 2017 had a profit of $744 million and promised to pay its first dividend since 2015. The return on equity was 3.5 percent, which stands in stark contrast to the 8 percent target.

The bank generated a large part of its revenues and profits in emerging markets, mainly in Asia and Africa, where it has a strong network of branches to rely upon. It also has a partnership with Switzerland’s derivatives developer Leonteq, having signed an agreement for structured products recently.

Rich Pickings in Asia

Winters expects to profit from the vast Chinese infrastructure project spanning the Eastern economic power with the Western world – known as One Belt and One Road.

The increasing international appeal of the Chinese currency renminbi will provide ample opportunity for his bank to grow, a bank that aims to attract more affluent retail banking clients.

The presentation of Winters came at a sensitive time, because it faces a fine of about 4 million Swiss francs from the Monetary Autority of Singapore. The authority says that the bank shifted assets from Guernsey to Asia, prompting suspicions of tax evasion and money laundering. Winters agreed that the bank had failed in its precautions.

Reshuffling

Neil Barry, the head of compliance at Standard Chartered had been released of his duties a few days earlier. Winters said that this had nothing to do with the Singapore fine.

And lastly, Anna Marrs, the Singapore-based regional CEO for Asean and South Asia as well as CEO for Commercial and Private Banking, on Wednesday said she would leave the bank. The move will prompt a reshuffle that will provide wealth management head Didier von Daeniken, an ex-Credit Suisse banker, with more powers.