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EQS Group-News: Dynamics Group AG / Key word(s): Restructure of
Company/Statement
RBR Capital Advisors Unveils Detailed Plan for Refocusing Credit Suisse to
Create Substantial Value for Shareholders
2017-10-20 / 20:40
Media Release, October 20th, 2017
*RBR Capital Advisors Unveils Detailed Plan for Refocusing Credit Suisse to
Create Substantial Value for Shareholders*
*Swiss investor highlights persistent underperformance driven by
conglomerate structure as well as outdated IT infrastructure and believes
plan has potential to double Credit Suisse's share price*
*Believes Credit Suisse should concentrate on wealth management including
the Swiss Universal Bank while splitting-off investment banking and asset
management into independent companies*
*New technology platform for SKA 2.0 to be built from scratch to jump
forward into digital age*
Küsnacht/Zürich, 20 October 2017 - Rudolf Bohli, Principal of RBR Capital
Advisors AG (RBR), an investment manager based in Küsnacht/Switzerland,
today described in detail a plan for creating substantial shareholder value
at Credit Suisse Group AG (CSGN:VX) ("Credit Suisse" or "the Company"), at
the Robin Hood Investors Conference in New York. RBR's plan, which addresses
the two key issues RBR sees as driving Credit Suisse's underperformance -
its conglomerate structure and outdated IT infrastructure - is also
described in an open letter to shareholders and a presentation, both
available at www.pureswissbanking.com [1].
"Credit Suisse is a hidden jewel - with terrific people and well recognized,
global brands," said Rudolf Bohli, Founder and CIO of RBR. "It is
unfortunate that the Company's great potential is being held back by its
complex and inefficient conglomerate structure and a sub-par IT platform.
Now is the time for Credit Suisse to rethink the outdated model of a
financial supermarket."
RBR noted in its analysis that Credit Suisse generates returns on equity
that are substantially lower than its peers and substantially lower than
focused financial services companies across the globe.
"Given our thorough analysis of Credit Suisse and our deep historical
appreciation of the Company and its brands, we are confident that our
proposals will deliver significant value for shareholders," Bohli continued.
"Our plan has the potential to double Credit Suisse's share price within an
18-24 month timeframe. We look forward to continuing constructive
discussions with the Company and other shareholders in the coming months
around how to best unlock value at Credit Suisse."
*Addressing the conglomerate structure: Establish three independent pure
play companies*
RBR proposes focusing Credit Suisse on businesses it is well-known for and
where it can deliver true added value by separating its complex and costly
conglomerate structure into three independent pure play entities, each
designed to be focused and efficient and to be domiciled in jurisdictions
that provide competitively favourable regulatory and capital environments.
In particular, RBR suggests that Credit Suisse should:
* Concentrate on SKA 2.0 - A world-class wealth manager and Swiss Universal
Bank, domiciled in Switzerland, servicing clients with independent advice
and best-in-class products
* Split off First Boston 2.0 - An independent investment bank, structured as
a partnership and domiciled in London or New York
* Split off a leading independent Swiss asset manager
The core of RBR's plan is to merge and concentrate the Swiss Universal Bank,
Wealth Management International and Wealth Management Asia, creating a
powerhouse recognized for its ability to serve private clients on a global
basis. Further, the investment banking activities should not only be
separated but also moved to a new jurisdiction to alleviate onerously high
Swiss capital requirements.
RBR believes the market would reward each of the focused companies with
premium valuations because of the opportunity the new structure afforded
them. Whatever synergies or cross-selling that may be available to
conglomerates are far out-weighed by the regulatory, capital and
organizational complexities such a structure inherently requires.
Ultimately, RBR believes that a stand-alone Wealth Management / Swiss Bank
would be more valuable than the entire Credit Suisse Group today.
*Addressing the outdated IT infrastructure: Digitalization at the heart of
SKA 2.0 - the bank for the 21st century*
Credit Suisse's current IT infrastructure is not client-focused and relies
on old technology. It is crucial that the proposed core entity SKA 2.0
abandons the IT legacy of the current Credit Suisse and terminates further
investments into the existing antiquated system. Instead, Credit Suisse
should create a new solutions services platform from scratch - one that is
tailor-made to help the Company evolve into a banking pioneer in the digital
age. RBR believes there is an opportunity drawing upon the latest
innovations in back-office and client-facing technology to create a bank for
the 21st Century. Ultimately, Credit Suisse should become a truly
digitalized bank. Once this infrastructure is designed, all operations
should be transferred onto the new framework.
*For media inquiries:*
*Switzerland*
Dynamics Group AG
Philippe Blangey
+41 43 268 32 30
+41 79 785 46 32
prb@dynamicsgroup.ch
*USA/UK*
Sloane & Company
Dan Zacchei / Joe Germani
+1 212 446 1882 or +1 212 446 1899
dzacchei@sloanepr.com
jgermani@sloanepr.com
*About RBR Capital Advisors*
RBR Capital Advisors AG, founded in 2003, is an investment management
boutique specializing in investments in continental European equities,
including long-short and long-only strategies. We are committed to
generating double-digit returns for our investors in the equity markets with
a commensurate amount of risk taken. We achieve this through our rigorous,
robust and time-tested bottom-up research approach which involves several
hundred company management meetings per year. We believe that
entrepreneurial freedom and passion for what you do brings the best out in
people. We set very high standards for what we do and as a consequence we
align ourselves with our investors: our own money is invested alongside
client assets. Our strengths have been externally recognized in a number of
industry award nominations, in particular for long-term performance, such as
EuroHedge and HFM Awards. We are proud of our long-term track record - but
we remain hungry to perform.
This is not a solicitation or an offer to subscribe.
End of Corporate News
621095 2017-10-20
1: http://public-cockpit.eqs.com/cgi-bin/fncls.ssp?fn=redirect&url=fa6ad06cdc64bfd62eabb358f6b9fe45&application_id=621095&site_id=vwd&application_name=news
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 20, 2017 14:40 ET (18:40 GMT)
