Embattled Credit Suisse hires Deutsche's Joshi in leadership overhaul

Credit Suisse named a new chief financial officer and group chief operating officer on Monday as Switzerland's second-biggest bank tries to steady the ship following a series of scandals.

Dixit Joshi will take over as CFO on October 1, while former Bank of Ireland chief executive Francesca McDonagh will start as the new new chief operating officer on September 19. They will both join the executive board.

Ulrich Koerner took over as Credit Suisse's chief executive at the start of August with the mammoth task of revitalising the institution following a catalogue of woes.

The new appointments bring "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", he said.

Credit Suisse has been hit by a string of setbacks in the last 18 months.

In March 2021, the bank was rocked by the collapse of the British financial firm Greensill, in which some $10 billion had been committed through four funds, and then by the implosion of the US fund Archegos, which cost it more than $5 billion.

In October, it was also fined $475 million by the US and British authorities for its loans to state-owned companies in Mozambique.

Joshi will replace David Mathers, who stepped down after more than 11 years.

For the past five years, Joshi has been the group treasurer at Deutsche Bank, where he played a major part in its restructuring while overhauling the balance sheet.

He previously worked for Barclays Capital and, before that, for Credit Suisse in New York and London between 1995 and 2003.

McDonagh will support Koerner in the steering and strategic development of the group, including operational and cost transformation.

McDonagh most recently served as the Bank of Ireland's chief executive after holding several senior management roles at HSBC Group.