Paul J. Davies, Columnist

Credit Suisse Needs a Cockroach Exterminator

Every time the troubled bank thinks things have quieted down, a new problem crawls out of its financial woodwork

February 17, 2023 at 5:00 AM UTC

Paul J. Davies is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering banking and finance. Previously, he was a reporter for the Wall Street Journal and the Financial Times.

You can’t have just one.
Photographer: ANNE-CHRISTINE POUJOULAT/AFP

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When you see one cockroach, you can be pretty sure there are more under the floor or in the walls. It’s often like that with companies and bad news, too: That’s the cockroach theory in markets. A minor scandal, a surprise loss, a litigation charge: Any one of these can leave a seasoned investor nervous that more trouble will scuttle out.

Credit Suisse Group AG has had a deep infestation for years and the critters just keep coming. The latest is the odd story that a former employee stole staff salary and bank-account data several years ago. It’s yet another reason to cringe after disappointing results for 2022 last week, which have led to another round of cuts to profit forecasts from analysts.