BlackRock’s Hildebrand Reportedly Participated in UBS, Credit Suisse Talks

March 18 (Reuters) – BlackRock Inc (BLK.N) Vice Chairman Philipp Hildebrand takes part in talks as Swiss officials try to hammer out a deal for UBS Group (UBSG.S) to take over Credit Suisse Group AG (CSGN.S), Bloomberg News reported on Saturday, citing unidentified sources.

Asked about the report, BlackRock spokesman Ryan O’Keeffe said in a phone interview that “Philipp has no formal involvement in these discussions.”

Hildebrand, who joined New York-based asset manager BlackRock in 2012, previously chaired the board of the Swiss National Bank. According to his biography on BlackRock’s website, in that capacity he was also a member of the Financial Stability Board, where he was named vice-chairman in 2011.

Sources told Reuters that UBS was considering taking control of its beleaguered counterpart Credit Suisse, which could allay fears that an ongoing crisis at the latter bank could destabilize the global financial system.

Earlier Saturday, BlackRock said it had no plans or interest in acquiring Credit Suisse, after a report that it was working on a bid to counter UBS.

Reporting by Ross Kerber in Boston Editing by Nick Zieminski

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