UBS says "ill-informed" Swiss debate feeding uncertainty

ZURICH (Reuters) - UBS on Monday said frequently "ill-informed" public debate about potential risks from its business activities and size has created uncertainties going into 2025 as Switzerland grapples with how to regulate the country's biggest bank.

UBS is facing stricter new banking rules since it expanded through the acquisition of Credit Suisse in 2023 when its old rival collapsed due to a string of financial setbacks.

At the centre of the regulatory debate is how much additional capital UBS should hold, a question which continues to hang over the bank.

In its latest annual report, UBS said it was already subject to and meeting capital requirements that are among the highest for any global systemically important bank.

"At the same time, the often ill-informed public debate in Switzerland about potential risks emerging from our business activities or our size in relation to the Swiss economy, coupled with intensified demands for future capital requirements, has created uncertainties as we enter 2025," UBS said.

The bank's business model and the quality of its assets make UBS a far safer firm than Credit Suisse ever was, it added.

The bank reiterated it was awaiting details on capital requirements from the Swiss government exepected in May.

"Due to the broad range of possible outcomes, the impact of the proposals on UBS can be assessed only when the implementation details become clearer," UBS said.

The bank backed plans to introduce a measure that would allow Switzerland's financial market authority to fine individual executives and a permanent public liquidity backstop as a safety net for systemically important banks, UBS said.

(Writing by Miranda Murray and Ariane Luthi, Editing by Friederike Heine and Dave Graham)