Colm Kelleher: The Corkman leading the rescue of Credit Suisse

UBS is to take over the failing Credit Suisse in a €3bn deal following a weekend of frantic negotiations which involved the Swiss government and banking regulators.

In 2021, Colm Kelleher was named as the chairman of the Swiss banking giant UBS - the world’s largest wealth manager. Pic: Pete Marovich/Bloomberg

Cork native and chairman of UBS Colm Kelleher has found himself heading up the multi-billion euro rescue of the failing investment firm Credit Suisse which is at the centre of the latest banking crisis.

Originally from Bandon, Mr Kelleher, 65, spent much of his career working for US investment bank Morgan Stanley, joining the company’s London office in 1989.

While there he ran the company’s fixed-income trading desks. However, he soon moved to New York where he rose through the ranks of the company eventually serving as chief financial officer and then president.

In June 2019, he stepped down as president of Morgan Stanley but remained working with the bank in an advisory role.

Axel Lehmann, Chairman Credit Suisse, left, and Colm Kelleher, Chairman UBS, shake hands beside Swiss Federal President Alain Berset and Swiss Finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter. Photo credit: Peter Klaunzer/Keystone via AP

In November 2021, Mr Kelleher, 65, was named as the chairman of the Swiss banking giant UBS - the world’s largest wealth manager. He signed up for the maximum 10-year term with the company headquartered in Zurich.

Mr Kelleher holds an MA in modern history from Oxford University and is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants, UBS said.

Despite spending much of his working life outside of Ireland, he has retained links with the IDA speaking at several conferences in recent years.

UBS is now set to take over the failing Credit Suisse in a €3bn deal following a weekend of frantic negotiations which involved the Swiss government and banking regulators.

Before the deal, UBS had $1.1tn (€1.03tn) in total assets on its balance sheet.

Mr Kelleher told the media following the announcement of the deal that UBS will remain “rock solid” following the deal, however, he added that it was too early to give an estimate of the number of jobs cuts there would be following the acquisition.

Kelleher said he will shrink Credit Suisse’s investment bank, a unit that has racked up losses in recent years. "Let me be very specific on this: UBS intends to downsize Credit Suisse’s investment banking business and align it with our conservative risk culture,” he said.

On the other side of this deal is Francesca McDonagh who works as chief financial officer with Credit Suisse. Prior to joining the company in September last year, Ms McDonagh, originally from London, had been the group chief executive with Bank of Ireland.