Prudential’s Tidjane Thiam to take the helm at Credit Suisse

Prudential's Tidjane Thiam is to replace Brady Dougan as chief executive officer of Credit Suisse as the bank grapples with regulations that have profit and weakened capital.

Dougan will step down at the end of June, Credit Suisse said in a statement on its website Tuesday.

In a separate statement, Prudential said a successor to Thiam has been found and will be named once the regulatory approval process has been completed.

The switch puts an Ivory Coast-born French national, who has spent the past decade running insurance businesses, atop Switzerland’s second-biggest lender.

Dougan, an American who has led Credit Suisse since 2007, has contended with pressure to shift strategy away from investment banking as the company’s stock posts one of the worst performances among European banks this year. Thiam has run Britain’s largest insurer by market value since 2009, almost tripling its stock price while successfully betting on Asia to drive up profit.

While calls for Dougan to resign died down following Credit Suisse’s settlement with US authorities last year on allegations it aided tax evaders, questions remained over the lender’s objectives and capital.

‘Fresh air’

Thiam will bring some fresh air to Credit Suisse, albeit without the banking background,” said Andreas Venditti, a banking analyst at Vontobel in Zurich. “Maybe cutting the investment bank will become easier,” he said. Prudential’s Mike Wells, the head of its US Jackson National Life unit, will succeed Thiam this year, Sky News said.

Thiam’s “extensive international experience, including in wealth and asset management and in the successful development of new markets, provides a firm foundation for leading Credit Suisse,” Chairman Urs Rohner said in the statement. “As CEO, he led Prudential to great success in challenging times.’

Thiam, 52, joined Prudential from UK insurer Aviva Plc, where he led the European unit. In 2012, he turned down an offer to become head of the World Bank's private investment arm, despite a personal request from US President Barack Obama's then-chief of staff, Jacob Lew, the Telegraph reported at the time.Lew is now Treasury secretary.

Bloomberg