Can Credit Suisse Stay Independent?

Credit Suisse Group AG was crying out for the cavalry Wednesday and eventually it came: Swiss authorities threw down a 50 billion-franc ($54 billion) liquidity line to quell the rising panic that had threatened to overwhelm its defenses.

Another moment of acute danger in Credit Suisse’s battle to reinvent itself should pass: Its stock jumped and the riskiness of its debt improved in early trading Thursday, although those gains lost steam as the morning went on. The trouble is its chronic problems remain and that’s where investors are focused. Some still believe in an independent future for a Credit Suisse, though much reduced in size and ambition; others now see a takeover and breakup as the most likely ultimate solution.