BUZZ Credit Suisse CDS at 9-month high after Q4 loss expectations add to scandals

Jan 31 (Reuters) – ** Spreads on Credit Suisse Group AG (CSGN.S) credit default swaps (CDS) last closed at 69.5 euros, highest since April last year

** The cost to insure Credit Suisse’s bonds against default have been on the rise due to legal costs tied to series of scandals and slowdown in its trading and wealth management division that led the second-largest Swiss bank to forecast a loss in its Q4 ahead of results next week read more

** Swiss Federal Criminal Court seeks 42.4 mln Swiss francs ($45.5 mln) in compensation from Credit Suisse in money-laundering trial due to begin on Feb. 7 read more

** Ex-chairman Antonio Horta-Osorio also resigned earlier this month for flouting quarantine rules in Britain and Switzerland that saw Credit Suisse shed 12% over six trading sessions, wiping away nearly 3 bln Swiss francs in market value read more

** Credit Suisse CDS peaked to 72.56 euros in April last year after it incurred $5 bln in losses during Archegos fallout and emerged as worst hit; it was already grappling with collapse of $10 bln worth of supply chain finance funds linked to Greensill Capital from a month earlier read more

** Credit Suisse with forward price-to-earnings multiple of 7.01 ranks among most undervalued; UBS Group AG (UBSG.S) 9.14, Deutsche Bank AG (DBKGn.DE) 8.67 and HSBC Holdings PLC (HSBA.L) 10.52

** Credit Default Swaps, popularized during the global financial crisis, are contractual agreements that allow its buyer to ‘swap’ credit risk with the seller. Higher spreads on a CDS indicate a growing likelihood of default

Reporting by Mehnaz Yasmin in Bengaluru

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