Credit Suisse CEO Dougan to Step Down, Thiam to Take Over

"With Tidjane Thiam, a strong and distinguished leader with an impressive track record in the global financial services industry will take the helm of our bank," said Urs Rohner, chairman of the board of directors of Credit Suisse, in a statement. "His extensive international experience, including in wealth and asset management and in the successful development of new markets, provides a firm foundation for leading Credit Suisse."

Currently, Thiam is CEO of Prudential, the London-based international financial services group. A native of the Ivory Coast, Thiam spent time working in his native country's government, serving as the minister of planning and development at one point. He also worked for McKinsey & Company, a consultancy firm, and Aviva, an insurance company, before joining Prudential in 2009.

"Credit Suisse has an exceptional business, great people, a solid strategy and strong momentum," Thiam said in a statement. "I look forward to working with the senior management team, the board of directors, and all the employees of Credit Suisse to maintain, further the strong momentum of the franchise and serve our clients in Switzerland and around the world."

For Dougan, who first joined Credit Suisse in 1990, the move marks the end of a quarter-century of work at the Swiss bank.

"We managed quite well through the crisis in 2008, we have anticipated and proactively evolved our business to the new market and regulatory requirements, and have been constructive and a thought leader in many of the new regulatory developments," Dougan says. "As a consequence, the strategic return on equity last year was amongst the highest in the industry and our cumulative net new asset inflows exceeded those of our peers. Now is the right time for the organization and for me to transition out of the CEO role."