Credit Suisse crisis and UBS acquisition

Conditions at the time

Credit Suisse’s efforts to restore confidence were insufficient, intensifying customer-fund outflows and liquidity concerns.

How events unfolded

On 3/19, FINMA approved UBS’s acquisition, and authorities provided additional liquidity and guarantees.

Stakeholders and impacts

Bank customers, shareholders, AT1 holders, and the Swiss government and central bank faced different conditions.

Information available at the time

Authorities explained at the time that the goal was to maintain deposits and banking operations without interruption.

Findings confirmed later

AT1 was fully written down at the time, but the legal validity of that order became the subject of subsequent litigation.

Alternative interpretations and limitations

A partial 2025 court ruling overturning the write-down order was confirmed, but it is not treated as the final recovery outcome.

Source-based context and interpretation

FINMA described a confidence crisis and liquidity risk even while the bank remained solvent. Approval of the UBS takeover combined emergency liquidity support with a full AT1 write-down, separating deposit continuity from investor losses. ASSETCASTING interpretation: A rescue headline can obscure who was protected. Distinguish deposits, equity and AT1 loss allocation, then examine the larger merged bank's capital and supervisory burden.

Evidence coverage through 2023-03-19 · Sources checked 2026-10-14

• FINMA approves merger of UBS and Credit Suisse ↗

Related events and periods1

• Inflation response and interest-rate adjustment →

  An event or period whose recorded start falls within this editorial interval. This does not establish that it caused or represents the characteristics of the era, nor guarantee that the entire period falls within the interval.