UBS hit badly by financial crisis

1 April 2008

ZURICH – Swiss banking giant UBS was expecting more than doubled writedowns of around CHF 12 billion (USD 19 billion) in the first quarter as a result of the sub-prime crisis, the bank reported on Tuesday.

This would probably lead to a net loss of around CHF 12 billion in the first three months.

The bank sought to raise capital to around CHF 15 billion by issuing new shares to ensure liquidity, it said.