UBS Chairman's Secret Preparation Proves Successful in Credit Suisse Crisis.

UBS Chairman Colm Kelleher's top-secret contingency planning with a small group of top advisers from Morgan Stanley paid off when Credit Suisse received a lifeline from the Swiss central bank in mid-March. UBS called on the Morgan Stanley advisers and bankers at JPMorgan Chase & Co., some of whom jetted down to Zurich and signed non-disclosure agreements. The round-the-clock negotiations produced a rescue deal that wiped out some bondholders, trampled on traditional shareholder rights, heightened too-big-to-fail concerns and enraged the Swiss public — but managed to stave off an even bigger global crisis. The emergency tie-up offers huge upside for a bank that investors already valued as Europe’s healthiest major firm — as well as enough risk to threaten that title.