Credit Suisse is the tale of a collapse foretold. Even in its core wealth management business, the decline has been very apparent for 15 years now, writes Bernardo Brunschwiler in a piece for finews.first.


This article has been published on finews.first, a forum for authors specializing in economic and financial topics.


On the international stage, the events surrounding the demise of Credit Suisse are prompting a loss of trust in both clients and potential clients in Swiss banking. I have just spent a few weeks in Latin America and I notice this – unfortunately – every day.

For many, the «CS-Story» is a total reputational disaster for our country and the Swiss financial center. Headlines like «El colapso del Credit Suisse jaquea la confianza en Suiza» or «Suiza ya no es lo que era: la crisis del Credit Suisse hundió su prestigio» in two of Argentina's most important newspapers prove that.

«No one has probably ever calculated how much shareholder value was destroyed then»

I am probably not all that objective about everything given I formerly headed the Latin American business of Clariden Leu, a former Credit Suisse subsidiary. But even during the integration in 2011, I had the impression that Credit Suisse management was making a mistake and had made a relatively «arrogant» assumption that fully coopting Clariden Leu was the best thing to do for the group as a whole and clients.

No one has probably ever calculated how much shareholder value was destroyed then. It was certainly never communicated in any case.

«Generally, in reality, you can never really replace competent people»

Over the years, Credit Suisse constantly lost experienced client advisors, even whole teams. Generally, in reality, you can never really replace competent people. Even the plan in 2021 to hire an additional 500 advisors failed, as I indicated in my 2021 piece.

But things were not always this bad for Credit Suisse. For many years, the bank was a clear reference point for Swiss private banking. I still remember when I got my first job there in 1982 and how impressive the bank's presence was then and how successful the firm was in Latin America.

«Switzerland will be a clear loser in the international wealth management business»

That this very same Credit Suisse is the one that has been in this downward spiral, careening from one scandal to another, has an alarmingly deep negative impact on the entire Swiss wealth management industry.

If the finance hub, the Swiss Bankers Association, UBS, and every single bank and wealth manager do not manage to restore that trust in the next few years with hard work and a serious, professional effort, while staying close to clients, Switzerland will be a clear loser in the international wealth management business.

«Wealth Management is a people business»

It might be a good time to remember that wealth management is a people business and one in which the advisors play a decisive role with their expertise – and deep knowledge of the countries and clients they are responsible for.


Bernardo P. Brunschwiler, lic. oec. HSG, grew up in Argentina. Starting in 1982, he got his start in Swiss banking with Latin American clients – first at Credit Suisse and BSI (1983-1991), based in Zurich, Lugano, Buenos Aires, and New York. Between 1994 and 2004, Brunschwiler worked for Swiss Bank Corporation (later UBS) and was responsible for its wealth management in Latin America. Starting in 2006, he became an independent consultant. In 2010/11 he worked for Clariden Leu and from 2014 for PKB Privatbank. He founded Bernardo Brunschwiler Consulting in 2012 in Zug.


Previous contributions: Rudi BogniPeter KurerRolf BanzDieter RuloffWerner VogtWalter WittmannAlfred MettlerRobert HolzachCraig MurrayDavid ZollingerArthur BolligerBeat KappelerChris RoweStefan GerlachMarc LussyNuno Fernandes, Richard EggerMaurice PedergnanaMarco BargelSteve HankeUrs Schoettli, Ursula FinsterwaldStefan Kreuzkamp, Oliver BussmannMichael Benz, Albert SteckMartin Dahinden, Thomas FedierAlfred MettlerBrigitte StrebelMirjam Staub-BisangNicolas RothThorsten PolleitKim IskyanStephen DoverDenise Kenyon-RouvinezChristian DreyerKinan Khadam-Al-JameRobert HemmiAnton AffentrangerYves Mirabaud, Katharina BartFrédéric PappHans-Martin KrausGerard GuerdatMario BassiStephen ThariyanDan SteinbockRino BoriniBert FlossbachMichael HasenstabGuido SchillingWerner E. RutschDorte Bech VizardAdriano B. LucatelliKatharina BartMaya BhandariJean TiroleHans Jakob RothMarco MartinelliThomas SutterTom KingWerner PeyerThomas KupferPeter KurerArturo BrisFrederic PappJames SymeDennis Larsen, Bernd Kramer, Armin JansNicolas RothHans Ulrich JostPatrick HungerFabrizio QuirighettiClaire ShawPeter FanconiAlex Wolf, Dan Steinbock, Patrick ScheurleSandro OcchilupoWill BallardNicholas YeoClaude-Alain Margelisch, Jean-François HirschelJens Pongratz, Samuel GerberPhilipp WeckherlinAnne RichardsAntoni TrenchevBenoit BarbereauPascal R. BersierShaul LifshitzKlaus BreinerAna BotínMartin GilbertJesper KollIngo RauserCarlo CapaulMarkus WinklerKonrad HummlerThomas SteinemannChristina BoeckGuillaume CompeyronMiro Zivkovic, Alexander F. WagnerEric HeymannChristoph SaxFelix BremJochen MoebertJacques-Aurélien MarcireauUrsula FinsterwaldMichel Longhini, Stefan BlumZsolt KohalmiKarin M. KlossekNicolas RameletSøren BjønnessGilles PrinceSalman AhmedPeter van der WelleKen OrchardChristian GastJeffrey Bohn, Juergen BraunsteinJeff VoegeliFiona Frick, Stefan Schneider, Matthias HunnAndreas Vetsch, Fabiana Fedeli,  Kim Fournais, Carole MilletSwetha RamachandranThomas StuckiNeil ShearingTom Naratil, Oliver Berger, Robert SharpsTobias MuellerFlorian WickiJean KellerNiels Lan DokyKarin M. KlossekJohnny El HachemJudith BasadKatharina BartThorsten PolleitBernardo BrunschwilerPeter SchmidKaram HindujaZsolt Kohalmi, Raphaël SurberSantosh Brivio, Mark UrquhartOlivier Kessler, Bruno CaponePeter HodyFlorin Baeriswyl, Michael BornhaeusserAgnieszka Walorska, Thomas MuellerEbrahim Attarzadeh, Marcel HostettlerHui ZhangMichael BornhaeusserReto JauchAngela AgostiniGuy de BlonayTatjana Greil CastroJean-Baptiste BerthonMarc Saint John WebbDietrich GoenemeyerMobeen TahirDidier Saint-GeorgesSerge TabachnikVega IbanezDavid Folkerts-LandauAndreas ItaMichael WeltiMihkel VitsurFabrizio PaganiRoman BalzanTodd SaligmanChristian KaelinStuart DunbarCarina SchaurteBirte Orth-FreeseGun WooLamara von AlbertiniPhilip AdlerRamon VogtAndrea HoffmannNiccolò GarzelliDarren WilliamsBenjamin BöhnerMike JudithJared CookHenk GrootveldRoman GausNicolas FallerAnna StünziThomas Höhne-SparborthFabrizio PaganiGuy de BlonayJan BoudewijnsBeat WittmannSean HagertyAlina DonetsSébastien GalyRoman von AhFernando FernándezGeorg von WyssStefan BannwartAndreas BrittFrédéric LerouxNick PlatjouwRolando GrandiPhilipp KaupkeGérard PiaskoBrad SlingerlendDieter WermuthGrégoire BordierThomas SignerBrigitte Kaps, Gianluca GerosaChristine HoustonManuel Romera RoblesFabian KäslinClaudia KraazMarco HuwilerLukas ZihlmannNadège Lesueur-PèneSherif MamdouhHarald PreisslerTaimur HyatPhilipp CottierAndreas HerrmannCamille VialMarcus HüttingerRalph EbertSerge BeckAlannah BeerStéphane MonierAshley SimmonsLars JaegerHa DuongClaude BaumannAndrew IsbesterShanna Strauss-FrankTeodoro CoccaBertrand Binggeli, Marionna WegensteinGeorge Muzinich, Jian Shi CortesiRazan NasserNicolas Forest, Joerg Ruetschi, and Reto Jauch.