Ex-Lloyd boss Sir Antonio Horta-Osorio (Hugo Philpott / PA)
(Picture: PA Archive)Sir António Horta-Osório has resigned at Credit Suisse after reportedly breaking lockdown rules to visit Wimbledon. His departure as chairman after nine months is surprising in some ways but in banking, he isn’t alone. Jes Staley quit Barclays last year over his historic relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. In 2020, Credit Suisse’s then CEO Tidjane Thiam quit amid a corporate spying scandal — not his doing but it happened on his watch.
Banking is a serious business — they are looking after our money, after all — and executives are held to high standards.
Sir António was brought in to fix the culture after scandals at Credit Suisse. He had to be impeccable. In his resignation statement, he said his “personal actions have… compromised my ability to represent the bank internally and externally”.
Expectations of business leaders are rising across industry. In the 1980s, it seemed like anything went so long as the money rolled in. Ethics were optional.
These days it’s not enough for CEOs not to pour toxic waste in a lake or get caught stealing — businesses have to be seen to be actively helping society. The influential Business Roundtable in the US redefined the “purpose” of a corporation in 2019, declaring that it was no longer just about making money for investors but balancing that against a need to pay workers fairly, support communities and deal ethically with suppliers. It was hugely influential.
At the smaller end of the corporate spectrum, B Corps — which enshrine social and environmental considerations in articles of association — are on the rise.
It’s happening against a backdrop of ESG: ethical, social and governance investing. A new generation of investors don’t just want to save for retirement — they want to save the world. Billions have flowed into ESG funds. BlackRock, the world’s biggest investor, has threatened to vote out CEOs of companies it invests in unless they help the planet.
This new pious mood in business doesn’t apply to all CEOs, especially those who own or control their business. Think Mark Zuckerberg; or Sports Direct founder Mike Ashley, installing his future son-in-law as heir apparent at his company. For most modern executives though, the bar for behaviour is now almost impossibly high. They must balance financial performance with saving the world, and being personally sinless.
Against all that, it’s no wonder Sir António left. The bigger miracle is that any bosses manage to stick around at all.
What do you think of Sir António’s resignation? Let us know in the comments below.
