Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) said on Monday Vice-Chair Severin Schwan would not stand for re-election to its board of directors, adding the board has nominated Christian Gellerstad as his successor.
Schwan, who is also chief executive of Swiss pharma company Roche, would have faced opposition from some major shareholders if he had presented himself for another term, the Financial Times reported last month.
The FT said the investors were concerned about Schwan leading Roche while at the same time acting as the vice-chair of Switzerland's second largest bank, a demanding position as the bank tries to shake off a series of risk-management scandals.
Schwan joined the board in 2014 and has acted as vice-chair and lead independent director since 2017, Credit Suisse said in a statement. It proposed Gellerstad to succeed him as vice-chair and lead independent director.
It also nominated Mirko Bianchi, who served as chief financial officer at UniCredit, Keyu Jin, a professor of economics at the London School of Economics, and Amanda Norton, who most recently served at Wells Fargo as group chief risk officer, for election as non-executive members at the annual general meeting on April 29.
Kai S. Nargolwala and Juan Colombas will not stand for re-election, Credit Suisse said.
Credit Suisse Chairman Axel Lehmann, who took over in January after the sudden exit of Antonio Horta-Osorio, thanked the outgoing board members, saying Schwan and Nargolwala in particular had "helped steer the company through some challenging periods with commitment, perseverance and dedication".
