RobertB
February 19th, 2008, 07:51 PM
Credit Suisse catches subprime virus
By FRANK JORDANS, Associated Press Writer Tue Feb 19, 1:21 PM ET
GENEVA - After seeming to have skirted the worst of the mortgage issues plaguing the financial sector, Credit Suisse revealed Tuesday that it had suspended a "handful" of traders for overvaluing assets and would take a $1 billion hit to its first-quarter results.
Switzerland's second-largest bank said it would still post a profit for the period, but the mispricing of asset-backed securities led to an overvaluation of about $2.85 billion.
Traders didn't update their figures to keep up with the market downturn, and this tardiness resulted in assets being marked higher than their actual value, Credit Suisse Chief Executive Brady Dougan said during a conference call.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080219/ap_on_bi_ge/switzerland_credit_suisse;_ylt=AvPRUDFaxYJWtbi.8bj 0skOs0NUE
By FRANK JORDANS, Associated Press Writer Tue Feb 19, 1:21 PM ET
GENEVA - After seeming to have skirted the worst of the mortgage issues plaguing the financial sector, Credit Suisse revealed Tuesday that it had suspended a "handful" of traders for overvaluing assets and would take a $1 billion hit to its first-quarter results.
Switzerland's second-largest bank said it would still post a profit for the period, but the mispricing of asset-backed securities led to an overvaluation of about $2.85 billion.
Traders didn't update their figures to keep up with the market downturn, and this tardiness resulted in assets being marked higher than their actual value, Credit Suisse Chief Executive Brady Dougan said during a conference call.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080219/ap_on_bi_ge/switzerland_credit_suisse;_ylt=AvPRUDFaxYJWtbi.8bj 0skOs0NUE