The logo of Credit Suisse in front of the Swiss parliament in Bern, Switzerland, March 19 2023. Picture: DENIS BALIBOUSE/REUTERSLondon — Investors representing more than Sf4.5bn of Credit Suisse bonds have sued the Swiss regulator after their investments were wiped out during last month’s government-orchestrated rescue.
It is the first major lawsuit in the public domain over the Swiss decision to render around $18bn of Credit Suisse’s Additional Tier 1 debt worthless during the Sf3bn all-share rescue deal last month, which stunned markets and alerted litigators. Swiss regulator Finma , which made the writedown order during weekend crisis talks in March after a slump in the value of shares and bonds intensified fears about a global banking crisis, declined to comment. Credit Suisse also declined to comment.
Engineered in the wake of the global financial crisis, AT1 bonds were designed to ensure investors, not taxpayers, carry the burden of risk if a bank runs into trouble.