Credit Suisse said on 8 December that it completed its latest rights offering and had put into action around 80% of the cost cuts it planned for 2023, as the bank maintains its course through its painful strategic review.

The Swiss lender said that 98.2% of rights offered had been exercised, or around 873 million new shares, until the end of the rights period at midday Zurich time on 8 December.

The gross proceeds of the rights offering amount to approximately CHF2.24bn ($2.38bn), which, added to a previous capital increase, should raise around CHF4.0bn, the company said.

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The rights issue was a cornerstone of Credit Suisse’s strategic review announced on 27 October, as the bank tries to overcome multiple quarters of losses.

“It will allow us to further support our strategic priorities from a position of capital strength and create a simpler, more stable and more focused bank built,” chief executive Ulrich Koerner said.

Cost actions already initiated as of 8 December are expected to represent around 80% of the cost-base reduction target in 2023 of about CHF1.2bn, the Zurich-based bank said.

The 16.4 million newly issued shares for which rights weren’t exercised during the period are planned to be sold in the market at or above the offer price of CHF2.52 a share, it added.

Write to Ed Frankl at edward.frankl@dowjones.com

This article was published by MarketWatch

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