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By Brenna Hughes Neghaiwi

ZURICH, Sept. 30 (Reuters) – Credit Suisse has appointed company veterans Nitesh Patel and Roger Senteler to act as co-heads of group internal audit, Switzerland’s second-largest bank told its employees as she tries to recover from serious shortcomings in risk management.

“Following the recent appointment of Rafael Lopez Lorenzo as Chief Compliance Officer, I asked Nitesh Patel and Roger Senteler to act as interim co-heads of the group’s internal audit from the 1st October 2021, ”Richard Meddings, member of the board of directors and chairman of Credit Suisse’s risk and audit committees, told employees in an internal memo viewed by Reuters on Thursday.

A spokesperson confirmed the contents of the note.

Lopez Lorenzo was appointed Chief Compliance Officer this month as Credit Suisse seeks to review risk and compliance following a series of scandals and braces for a strategic overhaul under the chairman’s leadership Antonio Horta-Osorio.

The collapse of $ 10 billion in supply chain finance funds linked to Greensill in March sparked a tumultuous period for the bank, which, coupled with a multibillion-dollar loss linked to investment fund Archegos , caused a series of executive layoffs.

“Nitesh and Roger both have extensive experience as lead auditors in a wide variety of front and back office areas, as well as experience at the board level of Credit Suisse reporting to their advice to respective legal entities in the UK and Switzerland, ”Meddings said in the memo.

Patel joined Credit Suisse in 2003 and now serves as the Chief Auditor for Change, Third Parties, Operations and Technology.

Senteler, who joined Credit Suisse after EY in 2016, is now Chief Auditor for International Wealth Management and Global Wealth Management, as well as Head of Internal Audit in Switzerland. (Reporting by Brenna Hughes Neghaiwi; Editing by Michael Shields)