Margaux Fodéré, edited by Romain Rouillard 20:25 p.m., March 15, 2023, modified at 20:26 p.m., March 15, 2023

After a brief lull on Tuesday, European markets are back in turmoil on Wednesday, five days after the collapse of the US bank SVB. At issue is the threat hanging over Credit Suisse, a bank whose share value has been divided by four in the space of a year.

The respite was short-lived on the European financial markets. Five days after the bankruptcy of Silicon Valley Bank and several small American institutions, some French banks experienced a historic unravelling on Wednesday. The shares of BNP Paribas and Société Générale lost 11% in value, weighed down in particular by fears surrounding Credit Suisse.

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It all started with a statement on Tuesday from the Saudi National Bank, the largest shareholder of this Helvetian bank, the second largest in the country. The Saudi institution has indicated that it will not increase its support for Credit Suisse in the event of difficulties. However, this bank has been in a delicate situation for a long time. In the space of a year, the value of its stock has been divided by four. "This is a bank that has structurally had organizational and risk management problems for five or six years," confirms Eric Pichet, a professor at Kedge Business School.

Low risk of spread

24 hours after the declaration of its main shareholder, Credit Suisse saw its share price collapse by 25% on the stock market, dragging in its wake many European banks. But according to Éric Pichet, the risk of spread is quite low. "When you look at Credit Suisse's market capitalization, I think it's about 7 billion euros. The market capitalization of UBS (a Swiss wealth management bank) is almost ten times more. We are at 60 billion euros. I don't think Credit Suisse can trigger systemic risk at this stage.

Nevertheless, the situation is being taken very seriously by the French government. The Minister of the Economy, Bruno Le Maire, is due to meet this Wednesday evening with his Swiss counterpart.