Credit Suisse: breaking up is hard to do

Credit Suisse finally revealed its new strategy this week — breaking the firm up into three. Talk about a Swiss finish. Many of the details had been leaked in the run up to the announcement but it was no less momentous for all of that.

The Swiss firm will keep its domestic operations, wealth and asseet management and markets businesses. Meanwhile, it is selling its profitable but capital-hungry securitization business to investment houses Apollo and Pimco and setting up a separate capital markets and advisory business to be called CS First Boston, reviving a storied Wall Street brand much to the delight of some of its veteran deal makers.

We look into the rationale behind the plan, what businesses will thrive and what will be shut down in the new regime. We take a look at who will be running CSFB and how he will staff it given the high number of senior departures from scandal-ridden Credit Suisse over recent years. We also take a look at how the restructuring will be financed.