[ by Howard Haykin ] Another Bank's Results Aided by Cost-Cutting - Beware. Credit Suisse posted increased profits for the 2nd quarter, providing the bank with some much-needed wind in its sails.  Q2 profits rose 2.6% over the same period one year ago, although revenues fell to 6.2bn Sw Francs (US$6.3bn) from 6.9bn francs from one year ago.  The investment banking unit contributed with an 84% increase in earnings. Investors were buoyed by the results, sending bank share prices up more than 6.2% in morning trading in Zurich.   A welcomed change of pace from the 39% drop over the past 12 months.  Credit Suisse also said it had achieved 2 billion francs of costs savings during the first 6 months of the year, and now would look for an additional 1 billion francs of savings by the end of 2013. Measures to Increase Capital Reserves. Credit Suisse also announced a number of measures to increase its capital reserves in response to concerns from Switzerland's central bank.  Such steps to improve its capital base would include issuing bonds to investors that convert into shares, as well as the sale of financial assets.  Currently, the bank will add 8.7 billion Swiss francs ($8.9 billion) to its capital reserves 7/31/12, and it expects to raise an additional 6.6bn francs by year's end. Credit Suisse will tap some deep pocketed investors to help it increase bank capital.  Most notable on the contact list: giant money manager BlackRock; a new investor, Singapore's Temasek - which is an SWF, or sovereign wealth fund - as well as other new investors. The steps are being taken after the Swiss National Bank singled out Credit Suisse last month as a bank that needed to "significantly expand its loss-absorbing capital during the current year."  Credit Suisse's local rival, UBS, should just continue with its efforts to strengthen its capital, the central bank said. A Word from Chief Executive Brady Dougan. On Wednesday's conference call he told analysts that he disagreed with the Swiss central bank's statement about the firm's capital position, but Credit Suisse nonetheless responded so as to calm concerns about its financial strength.  And he called the bank's plans for increasing its capital reserves as "a robust and balanced set of capital initiatives." Impact to Firm's Global Investment Bank Unit. The bank plans to target the investment banking unit first, when it seeks to cut expenses by some 550 million francs by the end of 2013.  The bank previously had said it intends to reduce its European investment banking division.  An additional 450 million francs of savings will be extracted from the firm's private banking division. Despite market volatility caused by the European debt crisis, pretax profit in Credit Suisse's investment banking unit rose 84 percent, to 383 million francs. Pretax profit at the firm's private banking division fell 7 percent, to 775 million. The bank did not provide the net profit figures.    [Dealbook, 7/18/12]