(Bloomberg) —
Most read by Bloomberg
Ammar Al Khudairy, the chairman of Credit Suisse Group AG’s largest shareholder, has resigned just days after his comments helped spark a plunge in the Swiss lender’s shares.
Al Khudairy, who became chairman of Saudi National Bank in 2021 when it was formed through a merger of National Commercial Bank and Samba Financial Group, is leaving the company “for personal reasons” and will be replaced by Chief Executive Officer Saeed Mohammed Al Ghamdi, according to a statement on Monday.
In an interview with Bloomberg TV earlier this month, Al Khudairy said “absolutely not” when asked if the Saudi National Bank would be open to further investing in Credit Suisse if there were another call for additional liquidity.
The Swiss bank’s stock fell to its lowest level on record and its credit spreads jumped after his comments. This helped drag all European banks lower as investors feared risk following the collapse of three US lenders.
Days later, UBS Group AG agreed to buy Credit Suisse in a historic government-brokered deal aimed at stemming a crisis of confidence that had been sweeping global financial markets. UBS offered to pay 3 billion Swiss francs ($3.3 billion) for its competitor in an all-share deal that includes extensive government guarantees and liquidity provisions.
The Saudi National Bank, which is 37% owned by the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund, saw the value of its investment in Credit Suisse plummet by about $1 billion in a matter of months after losing a stake of around 9.9% for CHF 1.4 billion.
Born in 1963, Al Khudairy has spent his career in Saudi Arabia’s financial sector, leading some of the Kingdom’s leading institutions. He had been Chairman of Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Morgan Stanley in Saudi Arabia.
The story goes on
Al Khudairy also founded the alternative wealth management company Amwal AlKhaleej and Amwal Capital Partners based in Riyadh and Dubai.
Separately, the Saudi National Bank appointed Talal Ahmed Al Khereiji as acting CEO. He was previously deputy CEO and head of wholesale business at the Saudi lender.
(Adds details on Al Khudairy throughout.)
Most Read by Bloomberg Businessweek
©2023 Bloomberg LP