Credit Suisse to Buy Back $6 Billion in Qatar, Saudi Debt - Bloomberg

Credit Suisse to Buy Back $6 Billion in Qatar, Saudi Debt - Bloomberg:

Credit Suisse Group AG plans to buy back about 5.9 billion francs ($6 billion) of debt issued after the financial crisis to the Qatar Investment Authority and Saudi Arabia’s Olayan family to cut funding costs.

The bank will redeem the contingent convertible bonds -- which automatically become equity when reserves fall below pre-set levels -- on Oct. 23, the first opportunity to do so, according to a statement from the bank on Tuesday. Qatar holds about $4.2 billion of the debt and Olayan the remainder, with the two top shareholders entitled to interest of as much as 9.5 percent on the securities.

The withdrawal of the debt is another sign of Credit Suisse’s emergence from a three-year restructuring that’s cut its reliance on investment banking in favor of a pivot to wealth management, tapping shareholders for billions of francs in funding along the way. Chief Executive Officer Tidjane Thiam is refocusing the bank as new regulations after the financial crisis -- including higher capital requirements -- forced it to abandon the investment bank-led strategy.