UBS general counsel Peter Kurer (pictured) will be the next chairman of the Swiss banking giant, it was announced today (1 April), with current chair Marcel Ospel opting to stand down after major losses suffered by the investment bank.

Kurer, who joined UBS in 2001 as group general counsel and has been a member of the group executive board since 2002, is poised to take charge after the group's annual general meeting later this month (23 April).

The news marks a rare elevation for a general counsel to the top job at a major financial institution and comes with UBS set to report net losses of around CHF12bn (£6bn) for the first quarter of 2008 as a result of the sub-prime crisis. The bank recently announced write-downs of CHF19bn (£9.48bn) from investments related to the sub-prime market.

Kurer commented: "I consider this appointment an honour and great challenge. I am committed to doing everything I can in the interests of shareholders, clients, employees and the communities in which we do business to further help UBS return to success."

The bank said in a statement that it accepted with regret Ospel's decision to withdraw his candidacy for re-election. UBS this week unveiled plans to raise CHF15bn (£7.49bn) by selling new shares.

Ospel commented: "I have always stated that I ultimately take responsibility for the bank's situation. With the measures that we have already taken, the proposals we are submitting to the annual general meeting and the processes we have put in place to deal with lessons learned, I believe that I have made all necessary contributions."

Helmut Planke, chairman of the nominating committee of the UBS board, said: "Kurer has a long and distinguished career as a lawyer in private practice and manager of a large legal and compliance function. He also brings a great deal of experience as a member of boards of financial and other firms and has a thorough knowledge of global financial markets and UBS."