Weekly Global News Wrap: Credit Suisse’s $17.2b of bonds written down to none; Credit Suisse says clients may want to move assets after merger

And Hong Kong pushes to become a virtual asset hub.

From Reuters:
Credit Suisse said 16 billion Swiss francs ($17.24 billion) of its Additional Tier 1 debt will be written down to zero on the orders of the Swiss regulator as part of its rescue merger with UBS, angering bondholders on Sunday.

Credit Suisse said that $17.24b (CHF16b) of its Additional Tier 1 debt will be written down to zero on orders of the Swiss regulator as part of its rescue merger with UBS.

It means AT1 bondholders appear to be left with nothing whilst shareholders, who sit below bonds in the priority ladder for repayment in a bankruptcy process, will receive $3.23b under the UBS deal.

ALSO READ: UBS buys Credit Suisse in “emergency rescue”

From Reuters:
Credit Suisse has told clients that they may want to move wealth assets to another bank once the merger with UBS takes place, according to an internal memo.

The memo, dated 19 March and seen by Reuters, gave talking points to Credit Suisse staff for client conversations following the planned merger. UBS will be the surviving entity of the deal.

“For now, assets are still legally separated. Once that changes, you (clients) may of course want to consider moving some of your assets to another bank if concentration is a concern,” the memo said.

ALSO READ: Low risk of banks runs in Asia: analyst

From CNBC:
Hong Kong is pushing to become a virtual asset hub, a stark contrast to mainland China, which has effectively banned trading and stamped out crypto-related activities.

Hong Kong is planning to introduce new rules in June that will require crypto trading platforms to be licensed by the Securities and Futures Commission.

The regulator recently launched a consultation on its proposal to regulate virtual asset trading platforms.