Swiss banking giant Credit Suisse today said it swung back into profit after two successive quarters of massive losses, with net profit of 2 billion francs for the first quarter.
The profit equivalent to €1.32 billion marked a sharp turnaround from the bank's record full-year loss of 8.2 billion francs in 2008, the bulk of which was made in the last three months of the year.
Credit Suisse CEO Brady Dougan said the results reflected the impact of measures taken by the group to deal with the crisis, including cutting costs and raising capital.
'While we may still be affected by continued volatility and market disruptions if difficult conditions persist, we believe that we are in a position to weather the storms and perform well when market opportunities arise,' he added.
Credit Suisse has been hit by the global financial turmoil, but it has so far fared better in the crisis than its local rival UBS, which earlier this month warned of further billion-dollar losses for the first quarter.
UBS last year also posted its second consecutive annual loss and the biggest in Swiss corporate history. UBS also had to seek government aid, while Credit Suisse turned instead to a Qatari investor for 10 billion francs in new capital last October.
