Shortly before the publication of the new quarterly figures, Deutsche Bank sees itself on the right path: The group restructuring is progressing, even in ailing investment banking, things have not been so bad recently. Analysts believe the bank will generate a slight pre-tax profit.
In the middle of the pandemic, Deutsche Bank is pushing ahead with its corporate restructuring – and is also accepting the red in the transition phase. However, CEO Christian Sewing has not given up hope of pre-tax profit in the current year. The Frankfurt Dax Group will publish the balance sheet for the period from July to the end of September 2020 this Wednesday.
In a TV interview at the beginning of October, the manager expressed his satisfaction with the development of the retail business in the third quarter, even if the momentum had decreased somewhat. The bank will show a good development when submitting its interim report, especially in investment banking.
Analyst estimates compiled by the bank itself assume an average quarterly profit of almost 180 million euros before taxes. The bottom line is that the institute could just end up in the black – but only before the deduction of interest payments to the holders of certain bonds.
As always, the range of estimates is very broad. In the meantime, analysts trust Germany's largest financial institution, which can look back on 150 years of corporate history this year, on average to generate pre-tax profits for 2020 as a whole. The bottom line is that 116 million euros plus are expected to turn into a loss of almost one billion euros if taxes, minority holdings and the interest on these bonds are deducted.
Postbank Systems is said to be on the cross-off list
With the far-reaching restructuring, Deutsche Bank wants to get back on the road to success after several years of losses in a row. The institute has withdrawn from some business areas and downsized investment banking. In addition, the number of full-time positions in the group is to be reduced by around 18,000 to 74,000 worldwide by the end of 2022. At the end of the first half of 2020, the number of full-time positions was still 86,824.
The bank recently announced that it would significantly reduce its branch network in Germany. The number of locations is to be reduced to 400 over the coming year. This means that Deutsche Bank is closing one in five of its branches in its home market.
According to insiders, the IT subsidiary Postbank Systems is also on the cross-off list. According to media reports, there are advanced discussions with the Indian software provider Tata. He is interested in taking over the company with 1400 employees, most of whom are based in Bonn. Postbank Systems has so far provided IT services for the Deutsche Bank subsidiary Postbank. Deutsche Bank is currently merging the computer systems of the parent company and subsidiary.
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