DWS exchanges CEO after suspected greenwashing and raid
Asoka Woehrmann resigns as CEO of DWS.
(dpa) The Deutsche Bank fund subsidiary DWS, which is under pressure after allegations of so-called greenwashing of financial products, is changing its boss. Stefan Hoops will be appointed as the new CEO at the general meeting on June 9th, DWS announced on Wednesday night. The previous boss Asoka Wöhrmann will resign his mandate on the same day. Hoops comes from the parent company, where he worked as head of the corporate bank of Deutsche Bank. Reasons for the change were not given.
Recently, the long-standing anger about the “greenwashing” allegations made waves again. On Tuesday, Deutsche Bank and DWS were visited by investigators who searched the headquarters of the largest German financial institution in Frankfurt and the neighboring DWS building. According to the public prosecutor’s office, around 50 emergency services from the public prosecutor’s office, the financial supervisory authority Bafin and the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) were involved.
According to a spokeswoman for the public prosecutor’s office on Tuesday, there is a suspicion of capital investment fraud. “The procedure is aimed at previously unknown employees and managers at DWS.” According to the authority, the investigation has been ongoing since mid-January 2022.
The background to the measure is the “greenwashing” allegations against DWS that have been circulating for months. According to this, the asset manager is said to have overestimated the information on sustainability criteria and in truth not have progressed as far as stated on issues such as environmental and climate protection. The investigations were started last year by DWS’s former sustainability officer, Desiree Fixler. DWS has always denied the allegations.
Florian Faber becomes the new CEO of the MCH Group
no. The MCH Group has appointed Florian Faber as the new CEO. The current head of the Live Market Solutions division will take up the position on July 1st. The trade fair operator is therefore relying on an internal solution. According to the press release, Faber has been with the company since 2009 and is very familiar with the industry and the needs of customers.
Former CFO Beat Zwahlen has been interim manager of MCH since January 2021. Zwahlen had to step in because the managing director at the time, Bernd Stadlwieser, had thrown in the towel after almost two years in office.
Finma extends protective measures at Sberbank Switzerland until August
The headquarters of Sberbank in Russia.
no. Finma extends protection measures for creditors at Russia’s Sberbank until early August. This emerges from a communication from the financial supervisory authority. The decision was made to maintain the measures due to the international sanctions environment and the ongoing risks to the bank’s liquidity situation.
Finma first took the protective measures at the beginning of March. since then the bank has been subject to a far-reaching ban on payments and transactions. It may not make any payments or transactions that are not necessary for the operative business as a bank without the consent of Finma. The measures also include a deferral of obligations from deposits. An investigator monitors financial stability and equal treatment of creditors.
US Treasury Secretary admits mistakes in inflation estimates
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is the first woman to take office.
(dpa) US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has acknowledged errors in her earlier estimates given the high level of inflation in the US. “I think I was wrong at the time about the course of inflation,” Yellen told CNN on Tuesday (May 31). She had underestimated the shocks to the economy from factors such as high energy prices and international supply chain problems. Yellen said in May last year that she did not expect inflation to become a problem. In April, consumer prices rose by 8.3 percent compared to the same month last year.
President Joe Biden stressed on Tuesday at a meeting with Yellen and Federal Reserve (Fed) Chairman Jerome Powell that the fight against inflation is his top priority. He also pledged that he would continue to respect the Fed’s independence. Powell is also concentrating on fighting inflation, just like himself. The central bank is already fighting the high inflation rate with a tighter monetary policy.
Almost three weeks ago, the Senate confirmed Powell for another term as Fed chair by a large majority. The Democrat Biden had already nominated the 69-year-old for four more years in November. Powell has headed the central bank of the world’s largest economy since February 2018. The then President Donald Trump, a Republican, had nominated him. Powell has been a member of the Federal Reserve Board since 2012.
Inflation in the euro zone climbs to 8.1 percent
sco. Brussels The inflation in the countries with the euro does not seem to know how to stop at the moment. Statistics agency Eurostat estimates that prices in the 19 countries increased by an average of 8.1 percent in May compared to the same month last year. In April, the value was still 7.4 percent. There have never been comparable price increases since the introduction of the euro in 2002. The last time inflation was higher in the countries of the European Union was in the 1980s.
It is worrying that it is no longer just the energy prices, which are generally volatile and particularly boosted by the Ukraine war, that are increasing (+39 percent). Core inflation, which excludes such variable components, rose by 3.8 percent in May. That is significantly more than the 2 percent that the European Central Bank (ECB) is actually aiming for. Estonia reported inflation of 20.1 percent in May. Lithuania (18.5 percent), Latvia (16.4 percent), Slovakia (11.8 percent), Greece (10.7 percent) and the Netherlands (10.2 percent) are now in the double-digit range.
There can no longer be any talk of price stability with figures like this. Nevertheless, the ECB is still hesitant to raise interest rates quickly. ECB chief economist Philip Lane told Monday «El País» although that negative interest rates should be eliminated by September. However, he once again emphasized the prevailing uncertainties and that the ECB intends to increase key interest rates step by step and by 25 basis points at a time. For the time being, he ruled out an increase of 50 basis points in July.
Searches at Deutsche Bank fund subsidiary DWS
(dpa) Searches at Deutsche Bank and its fund subsidiary DWS: Around 50 emergency services from the public prosecutor’s office, the financial supervisory authority (Bafin) and the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) paid a visit to the two headquarters in Frankfurt on Tuesday. According to the Frankfurt Public Prosecutor’s Office, the allegation of capital investment fraud has not yet been identified. The investigators had inspected the premises of both DWS and Deutsche Bank.
The background to the measure is the “greenwashing” allegations against DWS that have been circulating for months. The asset manager is said to have overestimated the information on sustainability criteria and, in fact, to have not progressed as far as stated on issues such as environmental and climate protection. The investigations were initiated last year by DWS’ former sustainability officer, Desiree Fixler.
A spokesman for DWS confirmed the searches and confirmed on request: “We have continuously and extensively cooperated with all relevant regulatory authorities on this matter and will continue to do so.” Deutsche Bank initially declined to comment.
Our report: The fund provider DWS under suspicion of greenwashing: That says the whistleblower who initiated the investigation
Our podcast: The case of Desiree Fixler: was she fired by the fund provider DWS because she drew attention to greenwashing?
Unilever brings activist shareholder Peltz to its board of directors
Nelson Peltz also wants to have a say at Unilever.
dba.
Activist investor Nelson Peltz is set to join the board of directors of consumer goods group Unilever on July 20. Peltz owns approximately a 1.5 percent stake in the company through his Trian Fund. After joining, he had criticized the group’s strategy, including the failed plan to take over GSK’s consumer health business. The American is known for his actions at consumer goods companies. He has also gotten involved with Procter & Gamble and Mondelez in order to get more out of it for the shareholders. He was also on the board of directors of the latter two companies. The news was well received on the stock exchange. On Tuesday, the share temporarily rose by more than 7 percent in the hope that with the arrival of the investor, the restructuring of the group towards a more attractive product portfolio with higher-margin products will progress more quickly.
Our comment: A textbook action: Unilever is dealing with an activist investor
Sentiment in China’s economy has improved slightly
Everyday life has not yet returned to Shanghai.
(dpa) Sentiment in the boardrooms of Chinese companies is improving, but is not yet sufficiently positive. As the National Bureau of Statistics reported on Tuesday in Beijing, the purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for the manufacturing sector rose to 49.6 points in May from 47.4 in the previous month.
However, the important economic barometer is still below the critical limit of 50 points, at which point an expansion of industrial activities is only expected again. The official index primarily reflects the mood in large and state-owned companies, which are benefiting more from the economic measures that have been introduced than medium-sized or private companies.
The second-largest economy is suffering from the rigorous zero-Covid strategy with extensive lockdowns and other restrictions. With the arrival of the easily spreading omicron variant, China is experiencing the largest corona wave since the pandemic began more than two years ago.
Adler reverses the deal, also focusing on Caner brothers-in-law
(Bloomberg) The Adler Group reversed the sale of a real estate package due to non-payment. According to the quarterly report presented on Monday evening, the contract with Partners Immobilien Capital Management was terminated because the company still owed the group money for a EUR 313 million deal from May 2020.
Partners had acquired seven development projects from Adler subsidiary Consus. “By the end of 2021, Consus had only received part of the purchase price and it was not known when and in what amount the payments were made,” it said. “It therefore turned out to be the best solution for Consus to reverse the contract and thus avoid lengthy court proceedings against the buyer.”
The brother-in-law of Cevdet Caner, the Austrian tycoon whose family invests in Adler, had a stake in Partners Immobilien.
Adler’s shares have plummeted more than 80 percent over the past year as the company struggled to refute allegations by short seller Fraser Perring. There were several resignations in top management. The landlord posted a loss of more than €1 billion last year after writing down a real estate development subsidiary and selling large parts of its portfolio to pay down debt.