Credit Suisse hires Southeast Asia wealth vice chairman

Sydney (Reuters) - Credit Suisse said on Thursday it has hired private banker Kwong Kin Mun as its new vice chairman for Southeast Asia wealth management.

The embattled bank is being bought by rival UBS Group for 3 billion Swiss francs ($3.27 billion) in a deal engineered by Swiss authorities to avoid more market-shaking turmoil in global banking.

Swiss regulators said it was necessary authorities took action as there was a risk Credit Suisse could have become "illiquid, even if it remained solvent" after a tumultuous period in which the share price tanked and deposits fell sharply.

In a statement from the investment bank, Kwong said "the sparks from the merger of two global leaders in wealth management will create enormous potential for clients and private bankers."

The UBS takeover is likely to result in major job cuts at Credit Suisse and the Swiss Bank Employees Association said on Monday staff reductions should be kept to a minimum.

Singapore-based Kwong spent 11 years at Deutsche Bank and 6 years at DBS Group Holdings previously, according to his LinkedIn profile.

($1 = 0.9169 Swiss francs)

(Reporting by Scott Murdoch in Sydney; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)