Saudi National Bank wanted to increase its stake in Credit Suisse to around 40% from 9.88%, but was prevented from doing so by Swiss regulator FINMA, Blick newspaper reported on Sunday.
It is unclear why FINMA opposed the move that would have seen Saudi National Bank, already Credit Suisse’s largest shareholder, pump $5 billion into the troubled lender.
With Switzerland’s second-largest bank on the verge of collapse, UBS agreed on March 19 to buy Credit Suisse for 3 billion Swiss francs ($3.4 billion) as part of a bailout organized by Swiss authorities.
Last month, UBS completed the emergency takeover of Credit Suisse, converting the Saudi National Bank’s stake in Credit Suisse into a mere 0.5% of UBS.