Credit Suisse drops over 20%

On Wednesday, European banks experienced another round of heavy losses in their shares. Credit Suisse, in particular, hit record lows after its largest shareholder, Saudi National Bank, disclosed that it could not increase its stake to 10% due to regulatory issues. Credit Suisse shares dropped by up to 23.8% and were eventually halted a few times by the stock exchange operator as trading volumes soared and the stock plummeted.

As a result, the European bank stocks index fell by 6.1% in morning trading, its lowest since January 3, and has declined by 14% since last Wednesday, translating to a loss of over 120 billion euros ($127.25 billion) in market value. The concerns over the collapse of SVB and Signature Bank, as well as the fear of contagion, have weighed heavily on European bank stocks. Shares in other European banks, including UBS, BNP Paribas, Societe Generale, Banco de Sabadell, Commerzbank, and Deutsche Bank, also fell significantly.

However, some experts believe that European banks, particularly the bigger ones, have better management of their interest rate risk and liquidity than American banks, which will help them overcome this crisis.