There should be banking M&A – Deutsche Bank CFO

Deutsche Bank says that there should be consolidation in the European banking sector. Chief Financial Officer James von Moltke said that the task in hand is to prepare for that outcome. Von Moltke told a financial conference hosted by BofA Securities, that it should first complete a strategic overhaul before contemplating major deals. He also said that they see the industry logic that there should be consolidation in European banking. It is something that they see in the future for their company. For transformation their focus is that they need to prepare eventuality.

Deutsche Bank has been repeatedly linked to a possible tie-up with a leading Swiss bank. Chief Executive Christian Sewing has consistently said that a turnaround plan he launched in 2019 should first bear fruit. Last year, the bank posted its first full-year profit. Von Moltke said that Deutsche’s four business units such as the asset management and its private, corporate and investment banks were performing ahead of the plan.

Moltke said that they stand by their disclosures, when asked about the U.S. investigation into asset management arm DWS’s use of sustainable investment criteria. He added that they will have to go through the process of those investigations. Stated that he did not see the probe having a measurable impact on Deutsche’s third-quarter results.