CS Credit Suisse Group

By John Letzing 

ZURICH--The chief executive of Credit Suisse Group AG shrugged off the recent plunge in the Swiss bank's share price and sought to highlight bright spots in a quarterly report that spooked investors last week.

The bank posted a fourth-quarter loss of 5.8 billion Swiss francs ($5.9 billion) nearly a week ago. Speaking at a conference on Wednesday in Florida, Tidjane Thiam said the bank actually made encouraging progress in its revamp during the period, particularly in key markets in Asia, where it netted new assets and bulked up on bankers.

The reported loss stemmed from a 3.8 billion franc impairment charge and poor results in its investment-banking division accompanied by asset outflows at some private-banking units. The quarter was marked by turbulent markets and risk-averse clients, Credit Suisse noted.

Still, Mr. Thiam said, "We don't think anything that happened fundamentally changes the strategy."

Shares of Credit Suisse have fallen more than 18% since the quarterly report. That has mirrored a broader trend for financial stocks in Europe, as investors register concerns about banks' ability to weather market volatility. On Wednesday, the stock made up some lost ground, rising 3.3% by the close of trading.

"It's not a great time to be a bank, if you believe in short-term share price," Mr. Thiam said. But he pointed to what he called a disconnect between markets and the underlying economy, which in his view appears relatively healthy. "A lot of us don't see, if you wish, the major recession that the market is pricing," he said. "That disconnect is real."

Mr. Thiam, who t ook over as CEO in July, also sought to put a positive spin on the bank's capital cushion, which has long been a concern for investors. Credit Suisse last week reported a key capital ratio of 11.4% as of the end of 2015, short of the roughly 12% figure that the bank had previously targeted in October.

"Yes, 11.4 is less than 12," Mr. Thiam said, "but it's a hell of a lot better than 10."

At one point, Mr. Thiam poked fun at the current market malaise, joking that, "Every time I change jobs, there's been a major crisis the following year."

Mr. Thiam decided to move to his previous employer, U.K.-based insurance firm Prudential PLC, in 2007---on the eve of the financial crisis.

Write to John Letzing at john.letzing@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 10, 2016 13:50 ET (18:50 GMT)

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