18 Sep 2025

Activist investor Cevian Capital has said it is “not viable” to run a large international bank from Switzerland due to new strict capital proposals

Unless the position changes UBS would have “no other realistic option” but to leave the country. Cevian is Europe’s largest dedicated activist investor and holds about 1.4 per cent of UBS’s shares. It added that the government proposals, which would force the bank to have as much as $26bn in extra capital, could not be meaningfully changed through lobbying efforts. “The board has the responsibility to ensure that UBS protects its competitiveness,” Lars Förberg, Cevian’s co-founder, told the Financial Times. “Under the current proposals, it is not viable to run a big international bank from Switzerland. We therefore see no other realistic option but to leave.” He added: “The message from the Federal Council is clear: UBS is too big for Switzerland . . . I respect the Federal Council’s decision, but I do not understand it. It cannot be undone. Lobbyists cannot change that either. That effort can be spared.” Link to article: https://lnkd.in/ekU4KnUE

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