UBS’s Swiss government-brokered takeover of domestic rival Credit Suisse could see UBS’s headcount slashed by as much as 30%, Swiss newspaper SonntagsZeitung has reported.
Citing an unnamed senior manager at UBS, the paper said as many as 11,000 Switzerland-based employees could be laid off.
UBS is said to be weighing up a shortlist of management consultants to advise on the takeover, with Bain & Company, the Boston Consulting Group Inc., McKinsey & Co Inc and Oliver Wyman Inc cited as potential candidates for the lucrative contract.
Scandal-plagued Credit Suisse is expected to significantly reduce its 30,000-strong workforce as the takeover proceeds, leading to an influx of investment bankers and financial analysts into the workforce.
Employing up to 125,000 people, the two companies comprise around 30% of the total banking workforce in Switzerland.
Global recruitment agencies have reported an unprecedented influx of enquiries from Credit Suisse employees seeking new jobs; they will likely see another wave as UBS gears up for the merger in the second quarter of 2023.
The news coincides with the opening of a probe into the US$3bn takeover by Swiss prosecutors
In a statement issued on Sunday, Swiss authorities said there were "numerous aspects of events around Credit Suisse" that need to be investigated for possible "criminal offences".
"The Office of the Attorney General wants to proactively fulfil its mandate and responsibility to contribute to a clean Swiss financial centre and has set up a monitoring system so that it can take action immediately on any issues that fall within its area of responsibility," said the federal prosecutor.
The office said the probe is not a formal investigation nor a criminal inquiry.