#CRISIBANCHE #UBS #CREDITSUISSE. A DOMINO EFFECT ON ITALY IS EXCLUDED.

After Silvergate, Silicon Valley Bank and Signature, the banking crisis is also reaching Switzerland. One of the biggest rescue interventions in the transalpine banking system was announced yesterday: UBS will merge with Credit Suisse through a share swap that will cost the former around 3 billion francs (one UBS share for 22.48 shares of Credit Suisse). The operation between the two Swiss giants is coordinated by the Federal Council, the Swiss National Bank and the supervisory authority Finma with the aim of avoiding a domino effect on the entire Swiss banking system. The bailout will also lead to the elimination of the value of the subordinated bonds for a total of 16 billion euros before even affecting the capital of the shares, creating a rather uncomfortable precedent for which the subordinated bondholders could be sacrificed before the shareholders. In all likelihood, this is yet another crack that will be misunderstood by the ordinary citizen, in the face of signals already received in the last months of 2022 when the Institute implemented an important “cut costing” policy by closing various branches in the area and getting rid of about 9,000 employees. Well, despite the regulatory hypertrophy formed over the years, the story offers the assist to bring the regulation and transparency of the governance of the banking system back to the center of the debate, as well as the possible criminal liability within ordinary management. Precisely in the Credit Suisse case, the FINMA (The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority) at the time had initiated various enforcement proceedings against the Bank, finding significant managerial defaults and a “serious violation of the Swiss supervisory law” regarding the performance of risky investment transactions (the cases of Greensill Capital and Archegos Capital Management). Why rule out a possible domino effect on Italy? Within our legal system, there are multiple safeguards aimed at guaranteeing the transparency of internal governance and at preventing the violation of the reference legislation: from crimes aimed at ensuring the correctness of corporate information (false corporate communications pursuant to article 2621 of the civil code), to specific cases committed against the Supervisory Authorities (obstacle to the exercise of the functions of the public supervisory authorities pursuant to Article 2638 of the Civil Code). Without forgetting the consequent involvement of the entity pursuant to Legislative Decree 231/2001. In conclusion, the promotion of a corporate culture based on ethics and transparency in ordinary management is the indispensable cornerstone for avoiding similar defaults in the banking sector.