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A bank branch of Credit Suisse Group AG in Bern.
Photographer: Stefan Wermuth / Bloomberg
Photographer: Stefan Wermuth / Bloomberg
Credit Suisse Group AG may have spied on employees other than former star banker Iqbal Khan and his former head of human resources, the Swiss newspaper SonntagsZeitung reported, citing people familiar with the matter and an investigation of the bank’s activities by the banking regulator. Finma.
The Swiss bank monitored a former employee in the United States as well as a former staff member in Asia and Finma is aware of the alleged activities, the newspaper reported, citing the people and an internal banking report. The employees who were allegedly spied on were not members of senior management, SonntagsZeitung reported.
Finma said earlier this month that it had initiated enforcement proceedings against Credit Suisse for allegedly spying by the bank against Khan, who joined the rival bank. UBS Group AG. It later emerged that former human resources chief Peter Goerke had also been monitored.
A Credit Suisse spokesperson told Bloomberg on Sunday that the bank could not comment on the matter due to Finma’s ongoing proceedings. The spokesperson cited an earlier statement that it would fully cooperate with Finma and that “employee observation is not part of the Credit Suisse culture.”
A Finma spokesperson declined to comment, citing ongoing proceedings.
SonntagsZeitung reported that one of the employees allegedly supervised by Credit Suisse had threatened other staff members and was therefore monitored. The other case could involve two former American workers who were in a relationship and may have shared banking information with outside parties, SonntagsZeitung said, citing the people.
The Khan spy scandal tarnished the bank’s reputation, saw CEO Tidjane Thiam ousted after a power struggle and shook the normally quiet world of Swiss banking.
An internal investigation ordered by the bank at the time concluded that Thiam did not know about the espionage and that the head of operations, Pierre-Olivier Bouee, was responsible. Bouee was fired late last year.
