Less than a month after naming a new chief executive officer, Credit Suisse is making more changes to its c-suite.
For one, the investment management giant has poached Dixit Joshi from Deutsche Bank, where he has spent the last five years as group treasurer, to serve as chief financial officer.
In addition, Francesca McDonagh, who was previously named the firm’s EMEA CEO, is now taking on a larger role as chief operating officer. She will join Credit Suisse in September from Bank of Ireland, where she was CEO. She previously held senior roles at HSBC.
These — and other — leadership changes come nearly a month after Credit Suisse announced it was undergoing a strategic review, the second such review in as many years. The investment bank has been wrestling with the fallout from the Archegos blow-up and the purchase of Greensill Capital’s supply chain debt since 2021. When Credit Suisse announced the second strategic review in late July, the firm highlighted the market downturn and changing conditions as reasons for the second review.
Alongside the strategic review, Credit Suisse announced on July 27 that it had appointed Ulrich Korner, who had been leading the firm’s asset management division, as its CEO.
On Monday, the firm announced that Michael Rongetti will take over Korner’s previous role on an interim basis while continuing to serve as head of asset management Americas and global head of investments and partnerships.
Meanwhile, Michael Bonacker has been appointed as group head of transformation to lead “operating model and cost transformation work” for Credit Suisse. He is currently vice chairman of investment banking and capital markets EMEA.
“They all join with extensive professional experience and a profound knowledge of the financial services industry, as we accelerate our efforts to make Credit Suisse a stronger, simpler, and more efficient group with more sustainable returns,” Korner said in a statement.
Joshi, the new CFO, comes into the firm as a turnaround veteran: According to Credit Suisse’s announcement, he played a “key role” in overhauling Deutsche Bank’s balance sheet over the past five years. Prior to joining Deutsche Bank in 2011, Joshi held roles at Barclays Capital and Standard Bank of South Africa, and he’s previously worked at Credit Suisse. He replaces David Mathers, whose departure Credit Suisse previously announced.
“Dixit has an impressive turnaround track record, with a broad experience across a range of investment-banking businesses, which will be invaluable on our journey in transforming the investment bank into a highly competitive banking and more sustainable markets business that complements wealth management and the Swiss Bank,” Korner said in a statement.
According to Credit Suisse’s second-quarter financial report, the organization plans to consider “alternatives that go beyond the conclusions of last year’s strategic review,” with the goal of a “more focused, agile group with a significantly lower absolute cost base.”
The firm wants to strengthen its wealth management, universal bank, and multi-specialist asset management businesses while transforming its investment bank into a “capital-light, advisory-led” group.
Credit Suisse also intends to reduce its adjusted operating expenses to below CHF 15.5 billion in the medium term.
