The crisis of confidence among Credit Suisse Group AG’s clients in March really was as bad as it seemed. At its worst, the Swiss bank was being propped up by central bank loans of 168 billion Swiss francs ($189 billion), equivalent to more than one-third of its total liabilities at the end of 2022.

Swiss authorities have stressed repeatedly that Credit Suisse wouldn’t have survived if it had been allowed to open independently on March 20 rather than being rescued by UBS Group AG, in a deal agreed the day before, due to complete this year.