Fidelity® And Credit Suisse Sign Agreement To Offer Investors And Advisors Greater Access To IPOs

News provided by

Jul 21, 2014, 01:16 ET

BOSTON and NEW YORK, July 21, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Fidelity Investments^® and Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC today announced an agreement that provides Fidelity's brokerage clients the opportunity to participate in initial public offerings (IPOs) and follow-on equity offerings underwritten by Credit Suisse.

The agreement expands Credit Suisse's potential investor base to Fidelity's millions of retail brokerage customers, as well as investors who work with advisors through Fidelity's registered investment advisor (RIA), correspondent broker/dealer and family office clients.

"With the increase in IPO activity over the past year and the potential for growth in the IPO market over the next few years, this new agreement with one of the industry's leading underwriters will provide our clients with more opportunities to participate in new issue equity deals," said Brian Conroy, president of Fidelity Capital Markets, Fidelity's institutional trading arm. "The agreement with Credit Suisse, which ranks No. 2 in market share for U.S. listed IPOs, is a continuation of our focus on leveraging our scale to offer our clients broader access to the IPO market, typically only accessible for larger institutional investors."

A 2013 Fidelity survey of 2,500 affluent and high-net-worth clients indicated that they had significant interest in IPOs. More than 50 percent of those surveyed currently buy or are open to investing in IPOs.

"This agreement will benefit Credit Suisse's corporate clients by giving them direct access to Fidelity's vast investor base, allowing issuers to capture demand for IPOs and follow-ons from the broadest possible segment of the market," said David Hermer, head of Equity Capital Markets in the Americas region for Credit Suisse. "The arrangement complements our industry-leading institutional equities platform and our world-class private bank. As a top-ranked underwriter of IPOs in the U.S. and globally, with the lead role on many of the most prominent transactions, we're delighted to partner with the investment industry's leading retail brokerage."

The agreement with Credit Suisse builds on Fidelity's established relationship with Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., and broader focus on providing Fidelity customers with greater access to the IPO and new issue equity market.

Notes to Editors

Fidelity was the first discount broker to offer IPOs to investors in 1996.
For the first half of 2014, 150 IPOs have priced which is up 60 percent from the first half of 2013.
In 2013, Fidelity Capital Markets participated in 285 IPO and follow-on transactions, representing more than $3.5 billion in initial retail customer demand.
In the first half of 2014, Fidelity Capital Markets participated in 174 IPO and follow-on transactions, which is up more than 30 percent vs. the same period in 2013, representing $1.62 billion in initial retail customer demand.
This alliance is related to Fidelity's brokerage business and not its mutual fund business. The agreement is between National Financial Services, the broker-dealer for Fidelity Capital Markets, and Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC.
In the first half of 2014 Credit Suisse ranked No. 2 in IPOs globally, in the United States and in the Europe, Middle East and Africa region.
Credit Suisse ranked No. 1 in cross-border listings and in Non-Japan Asia IPOs.
Credit Suisse completed 63 bookrun IPOs in the first half of 2014, its most active half-year period on record.
Credit Suisse ranks No. 1 in 2014 for long-term IPO performance both globally and in the United States.

Source for Fidelity statistics: Fidelity internal figures
Source for Credit Suisse statistics: Dealogic 1H 2014 figures

About Fidelity Investments

At Fidelity, our goal is to make financial expertise broadly accessible and effective in helping people live the lives they want. We do this by focusing on a diverse set of customers: from 23 million people investing their own life savings, to 20,000 businesses needing help managing their employee benefit programs to 10,000 advisors and brokers needing technology solutions to invest their own clients' money. Privately held and with 41,000 employees around the world, Fidelity is a leading provider of investment management, retirement planning, portfolio guidance, brokerage, benefits outsourcing and many other financial products.

As of June 30, 2014, the company held assets under administration of $4.9 trillion, including managed assets of $2.0 trillion. It is one of the largest mutual fund companies in the United States and the No. 1 provider of both workplace savings plans and Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs). For more information about Fidelity Investments, visit www.fidelity.com.

About Credit Suisse AG

Credit Suisse AG is one of the world's leading financial services providers and is part of the Credit Suisse group of companies (referred to here as 'Credit Suisse'). As an integrated bank, Credit Suisse is able to offer clients its expertise in the areas of private banking, investment banking and asset management from a single source. Credit Suisse provides specialist advisory services, comprehensive solutions and innovative products to companies, institutional clients and high net worth private clients worldwide, and also to retail clients in Switzerland. Credit Suisse is headquartered in Zurich and operates in over 50 countries worldwide. The group employs approximately 45,600 people. The registered shares (CSGN) of Credit Suisse's parent company, Credit Suisse Group AG, are listed in Switzerland and, in the form of American Depositary Shares (CS), in New York. Further information about Credit Suisse can be found at www.credit-suisse.com.

Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC is a subsidiary of Credit Suisse AG.

Fidelity Investments is an independent company, unaffiliated with Credit Suisse. The information and opinions expressed by Credit Suisse in no way represent the advice, opinions or recommendations of Fidelity Investments or any of its affiliates. The information contained herein is general in nature, is provided for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Fidelity Investments does not provide advice of any kind.

Third party marks are the property of their respective owners; all other marks are the property of FMR LLC.

Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services provides brokerage products and services and is a division of Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC. National Financial is a division of National Financial Services LLC through which clearing, custody and other brokerage services may be provided. Both members NYSE, SIPC.

200 Seaport Boulevard Boston, MA 02210

Fidelity Investments Institutional Services Company, Inc., 500 Salem Street, Smithfield, RI 02917

693678.1.0

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20091204/CSLOGO

SOURCE Credit Suisse AG