Swiss FINMA Taps Stefan Walter, Ex-ECB Chief, as New CEO

<p>The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority
(FINMA) has appointed Stefan Walter as the Chief Executive Officer. Scheduled to assume office
on April 1, 2024, Walter's background as the Former Director General at the
European Central Bank (ECB) positions him as a seasoned leader with extensive experience in international banking supervision.</p><p>Stefan Walter, a 59-year-old German national, brings
a wealth of expertise to FINMA from his significant roles in global
financial institutions. Having served as the Director General at the ECB since
2014, Walter initially oversaw the supervision of major banks in the
eurozone. </p><p>His six-year leadership in this capacity culminated
in a transition to overseeing risk supervision in 2020, covering
various risk categories such as credit and <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/terms/l/liquidity/">liquidity</a> risks.</p><p>A Global Banking Expert</p><p>Marlene Amstad, the Chair of FINMA's Board of
Directors, mentioned: "<a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/tag/finma/" target="_blank" rel="follow">FINMA</a> is gaining an experienced leader in Stefan
Walter with a wealth of international financial market experience in banking
supervision. Particularly, his knowledge in large bank supervision
and his links to international supervisory authorities will be a great asset
for FINMA's supervision of the systemically important Swiss banks."</p><blockquote><p lang="de" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FINMA?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FINMA</a>: Stefan Walter wird neuer Direktor <a href="https://t.co/9PaS7OXmgB">https://t.co/9PaS7OXmgB</a> <a href="https://t.co/ThuXY8gaIw">pic.twitter.com/ThuXY8gaIw</a></p>— Eidgenössische Finanzmarktaufsicht FINMA (@FINMA_media) <a href="https://twitter.com/FINMA_media/status/1750111585719246895?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 24, 2024</a></blockquote><p>Before his tenure at the <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/tag/ecb/" target="_blank" rel="follow">ECB</a>, Walter served as the
Global Bank Regulatory and Supervisory Policy Network Leader at Ernst &amp;
Young for two years. Notably, from 2006 to 2011, he was Secretary General of
the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision. </p><p>During this period, he orchestrated international
negotiations on regulatory reforms, crucial for fortifying the global financial
system during the aftermath of the global financial crisis, FINMA noted in a
statement published on its website today (Wednesday).</p><p>FINMA's Challenges and Credit Suisse Crisis</p><p>In September 2023, Urban Angehrn resigned as FINMA's CEO due to health reasons. The departure followed
<a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/institutional-forex/credit-suisse-under-scrutiny-finma-report-exposes-regulatory-gaps/" target="_blank" rel="follow">months of scrutiny</a> over FINMA's handling of the Credit Suisse debacle, which
has raised questions about the regulator's effectiveness, Reuters reported. </p><p>Angehrn, at the helm since November
2021, acknowledged the unique challenge of contributing to the improvement of
the Swiss financial center but cited the toll on his health from the persistent
stress. His resignation signals a critical moment for FINMA and the broader
financial landscape.</p><p>Amid accusations of delayed
intervention and ineffective measures, FINMA faced severe criticism for its
perceived failure to curb the string of scandals at Credit Suisse. In his statement, Angehrn expressed the immense challenge he faced in
contributing to the sustainable improvement of the Swiss financial center.</p>

This article was written by Jared Kirui at www.financemagnates.com.