Credit Suisse's new chief executive has sounded out its main investors about plans to expand the Swiss bank's asset management operations, potentially through an acquisition, according to people familiar with the talks.
Tidjane Thiam, who took over at Switzerland's second-biggest bank on July 1, has met many of its top 20 investors in the past few weeks and discussed bulking up the asset management business while also signalling that acquisitions are a possibility, writes banking editor Martin Arnold.
As the bank prepares to unveil quarterly results on Thursday, the news that Mr Thiam is already eyeing potential takeovers will revive memories of his abortive bid for AIG's Asian unit only months after becoming CEO of UK insurer Prudential in 2009.
Most analysts expect Mr Thiam to slash underperforming parts of Credit Suisse's investment bank and expand its private banking operation, particularly in Asia. But he has signalled to investors that he sees most potential to expand in asset management, which is less capital intensive than investment banking and has strong cross-selling potential with Credit Suisse's private bank.
One possibility is for Credit Suisse to use a potential acquisition as a reason for raising capital from shareholders, which could also help to strengthen its capital levels, according to a person familiar with the situation. Mr Thiam is expected to unveil his new strategy in November, investors said. The bank declined to comment.