Swiss banks do not like boardroom disagreements — still less when their dirty linen is aired in public.

But this is exactly what happened today, when UBS laid bare a disagreement over succession planning between Marcel Ospel, the chairman, and the rest of the board.

Peter Wuffli, the chief executive who Mr Ospel wanted as his successor, also wanted the chairman's job but was rebuffed.

Mr Wuffli has left and will be replaced by Marcel Rohner, the former head of wealth management.

But Mr Ospel, whose position must surely be compromised, will stay on for a further three years.

This drama makes for a fascinating, and rare, insight into the boardroom practices of the still notoriously private Swiss banking fraternity.

However, it will raise serious questions for UBS and its incoming boss.

Despite its assertion that strategy will remain unchanged, the change at the top is bound to reignite speculation — particularly while the shares are stumbling — that UBS is a target for a break-up or will consider plans to spin off its investment banking arm.

This seems premature.

Previous woes, including US personnel quitting and loss-sustaining hedge funds being shut aside, a boardroom spat should not be allowed to cloud the bank’s success.

In investment banking terms, particularly in giving M&A advice, UBS is booming, leading the pack in Europe and Asia.

It is still the world’s biggest money manager for the wealthy and has developed a lucrative trading relationships with the hedge fund community.

For now, those virtues are likely to be obscured.

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