The contentious exchanges between UBS and the Swiss Federal Council have been dragging since the takeover of CS.
Reading the gossip in the FT means the attempts to “tone it down” and “don’t wash you dirty laundry in public” are failing.
UBS told to tone down lobbying in row with Swiss government
Switzerland’s largest bank has been at odds with the government for nearly two years over plans to force it to increase its capital requirements by up to $26bn. But the government’s stance has hardened in recent weeks, with the finance minister rejecting a key compromise proposal.
Lawmakers have warned UBS to reduce the public profile of chief executive Sergio Ermotti in opposing the changes, two people familiar with the matter said. “A large part of parliament actually agrees with the bank [on a key point of contention] but we have told them that their lobbying and particularly statements by Ermotti are not helpful right now,” said one of the lawmakers.
Another parliamentarian in Switzerland’s upper house said they had privately advised the bank to “reconsider its lobbying campaign”, particularly as the relationship between the bank’s management and Switzerland’s finance minister Karin Keller-Sutter has deteriorated.