NO-$HOW

Ousted Credit Suisse Chairman Had Company Pay for Empty Private Jet Flights

The chairman’s use of company cash for empty planes reportedly hastened his ouster.

The former chairman of Credit Suisse had the company pay for empty private flights on multiple occasions, The Wall Street Journal reports. An internal review of company travel found that, after António Horta-Osório moved to Zurich last spring, he flew from there to London and Lisbon on several weekends, usually disembarking on a Thursday. The planes, paid for by Credit Suisse, would then return to Switzerland empty, fly back to Horta-Osório on Monday, and return him to Zurich, rather than waiting out the weekend. According to the Journal, a person close to Horta-Osório said the planes were rented and not chartered for the weekends. Horta-Osório’s use of company cash for empty planes reportedly hastened his ouster from the chairmanship. The company announced his resignation this week after none of his fellow board members chose to back him in the power struggle.