Olivier Thiriet is the head of cash equities for Asia-Pacific and will assume the new responsibility as Japan chief in addition to his new role.

Credit Suisse, Switzerland's second largest bank, has named Olivier Thiriet as chief executive for Japan effective 1 January 2012.

Thiriet is the head of cash equities for Asia-Pacific and will assume the new responsibility as Japan chief in addition to this role. He succeeds Paul Kuo, the incumbent CEO, who is set to leave after working for 18 years at Credit Suisse. Kuo shall remain with the bank until April 2012 to assist in the transition, according to a statement released by the bank.

As Japan CEO, Olivier Thiriet will be responsible for all of Credit Suisse's private banking, investment banking and asset management operations in the country. He moves to Japan from Hong Kong and will report to Osama Abbasi, the CEO for Asia-Pacific. 

Thiriet returns to Japan after moving to Hong Kong in 2009 to take on his present position. Previously, he led the bank's electronic brokerage operations in Japan and served as head of the alternative execution businesses for Asia-Pacific. 

His appointment follows the hire of Masaru Ohnishi, previously a strategist for Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities, as chief equity strategist in Japan last month. Japan is the Zurich-based bank's third largest office outside of Singapore and Hong Kong with around 591 staff.