Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft (Deutsche Bank) provides corporate and investment banking, private clients and asset management products and services.
Business Strategy
The Global Hausbank strategy is underpinned by three key themes: risk management, sustainability and technology, all of which have become even more important considering the ongoing geopolitical and macroeconomic challenges.
Segments
The company operates through Corporate Bank, Investment Bank, Private Bank, Asset Management...
Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft (Deutsche Bank) provides corporate and investment banking, private clients and asset management products and services.
Business Strategy
The Global Hausbank strategy is underpinned by three key themes: risk management, sustainability and technology, all of which have become even more important considering the ongoing geopolitical and macroeconomic challenges.
Segments
The company operates through Corporate Bank, Investment Bank, Private Bank, Asset Management and Corporate & Other.
Corporate Bank segment
Corporate banking is an integral part of Deutsche Bank’s business. Corporate Bank’s capabilities in Cash Management, Trade Finance and Lending in close collaboration with Foreign Exchange in the Investment Bank enable the business segment to serve the core needs of its clients. As a leading bank serving multinational and German corporates domestically and abroad (source: EUROMONEY), the Corporate Bank helps clients in optimizing their working capital and liquidity, securing global supply chains and distribution channels and managing their risks. Furthermore, Corporate Bank acts as a specialized provider of services to financial institutions, offering Correspondent Banking, Trust and Agency Services as well as Securities Services. Finally, the business segment provides Business Banking services to small corporate and entrepreneur clients in Germany through a standardized product suite.
Corporate Bank is primarily focused on serving corporate clients, including the German ‘Mittelstand’, larger and smaller sized commercial and business banking clients in Germany as well as multinational companies. The division also provides financial institutions with certain transaction banking services. Corporate Bank reports revenues based on three client categories: Corporate Treasury Services, Institutional Client Services and Business Banking.
Products and Services
Corporate Bank is a global provider of risk management solutions, cash management, lending, trade finance, trust and agency services as well as securities services. Cash management services include integrated payments and FX solutions. Trade finance and lending offering spans from documentary and guarantee business to structured trade finance and lending. Trust and agency services cover depository receipts, corporate trust and document custody. Focusing on the finance departments of corporate and commercial clients and financial institutions in Germany and across the globe, its holistic expertise and global network allows the bank to offer integrated solutions.
In addition to Corporate Bank’s product suite, coverage teams provide clients with access to the expertise of Investment Bank.
Distribution Channels and Marketing
The corporate coverage function of Corporate Bank focuses on international mid and large corporate clients and is organized into three units: Global Coverage, MidCorps Coverage and Risk Management Solutions. Coverage includes multi-product generalists covering headquarter level and subsidiaries via global, regional and local coverage teams for multinational companies. MidCorps Coverage includes multi-product generalists with a special focus to medium sized enterprises. Risk Management Solutions includes Foreign Exchange, Emerging Markets and Rates product specialists. This unit is managed regionally in Asia Pacific Middle East & Africa, Americas and Europe to ensure close connectivity to clients.
Corporate clients are served out of all three of the Corporate Bank’s client categories. Corporate Treasury Services covers mid and large corporate clients across two brands, Deutsche Bank and Postbank, and offers the whole range of solutions across cash, trade financing, lending and risk management for the corporate treasurer. Institutional Client Services consists of Cash Management for Institutional clients, Trust and Agency Services, as well as Securities Services.
Investment Bank
The Investment Bank is a key pillar of Deutsche Bank’s business. Across Fixed Income & Currencies (FIC) and Origination & Advisory (O&A), corporate and institutional clients are offered a comprehensive range of services encompassing financing, market making/liquidity provision, risk management solutions, advisory, and debt & equity issuance. The business segment regionally encompasses Europe, Americas, and APAC/MEA.
Investment Bank combines Deutsche Bank’s Fixed Income & Currencies and Origination & Advisory businesses, as well as Deutsche Bank Research. The Investment Bank focuses on its traditional strengths in these markets, bringing together wholesale banking expertise across risk management, sales and trading, investment banking and infrastructure.
In April 2023, Deutsche Bank announced that it reached an agreement on an all-cash offer for the acquisition of Numis Corporation Plc (‘Numis’). On October 13, 2023, Deutsche Bank completed the transaction and acquired a 100% interest in Numis.
Products and Services
Fixed Income & Currencies is split into two sub-categories: ‘Fixed Income & Currencies: Financing’, the Financing business, which provides comprehensive, customized financing solutions across industries and asset classes, and ‘Fixed Income & Currencies: Ex-Financing’, which brings together institutional sales, trading and structuring expertise across Foreign Exchange, Rates, Emerging Markets and Credit Trading. The Fixed Income & Currencies business operates globally and provides both corporate and institutional clients liquidity, market making services and a range of specialized risk management solutions across a broad range of Fixed Income & Currencies products. The application of technology and continued innovation of transaction lifecycle processes is enabling Deutsche Bank to increase automation/electronification to respond to client and regulatory requirements.
Origination & Advisory is responsible for the division’s Debt Origination business, Mergers and Acquisitions, and a focused Equity Advisory and Origination platform. It consists of regional and industry-focused coverage teams, co-led from the bank’s hubs in Europe, the U.S. and Asia Pacific. This facilitates the delivery of a range of financial products and services to the bank’s corporate clients.
Distribution Channels and Marketing
Coverage of the Investment Bank’s clients is provided principally by three groups working in conjunction with each other: The Institutional Client Group, which houses the debt sales team, Investment Banking Coverage within Origination & Advisory and Risk Management Solutions in Corporate Bank, which covers capital markets and treasury solutions. The close cooperation between these groups helps to create enhanced synergies leading to increased cross selling of products/solutions to clients.
Private Bank
In 2024, Private Bank reshaped its business along two core client sectors, Personal Banking and Wealth Management & Private Banking, reinforcing its long-term dedication to a customer-centric strategy. This setup enables more targeted client service, sharpening the business model around personal and private clients, wealthy individuals, entrepreneurs, family offices and commercial customers in international markets.
The Personal Banking business is positioned as the market-leading franchise in Germany through its two major brands, Deutsche Bank and Postbank.
Private Bank serves personal and private clients, wealthy individuals, entrepreneurs and families. Wealth Management & Private Banking combines the coverage of private banking, high net-worth and ultra-high net-worth clients, as well as business clients in selected international businesses.
In 2025, Private Bank will continue its transformation of the Personal Banking business, further building out digital and remote channels, while optimizing the physical footprint by closing traditional branches or converting them into flagship locations.
Products and Services
Private Bank’s product range includes payment and account services, credit and deposit products as well as investment advice. These offerings include a range of ESG products, which enable clients to access ESG compliant lending and investment products in line with sustainability related values and according to specified ESG strategies, scores and exclusionary criteria.
Personal Banking Germany pursues a differentiated, customer-focused approach with two strong and complementary main brands: Deutsche Bank and Postbank. The Deutsche Bank brand focuses on providing its private customers with banking and financial products and services that include sophisticated and individual advisory solutions. The focus of the Postbank brand is on providing its retail customers with standard products and daily retail banking services supported by direct banking capabilities. In cooperation with Deutsche Post DHL AG, the retail bank in Germany also offers postal and parcel services in the Postbank brand branches. In international markets of Italy, Spain, Belgium and India, the bank provides retail and affluent customers with daily banking services as well as sophisticated investment advisory solutions.
Wealth Management & Private Banking offers its private banking, high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients globally, bespoke and sophisticated services in planning, managing and investing wealth, financing personal and business interests and servicing institutional and corporate needs.
Distribution Channels and Marketing
Private Bank pursues an omni-channel approach and customers can flexibly choose between different possibilities to access services and products.
The distribution channels include branch networks, supported by advisory and customer call centers, self-service terminals as well as digital offerings including online and mobile banking. Private Bank also has collaborations with self-employed financial advisors and other sales and cooperation partners, including various cooperations with Business-to-Business-to-Consumer partners in Germany. For the Wealth Management & Private Banking client category, the Private Bank has a distinct client coverage team approach with relationship and investment managers supported by client service executives assisting clients with wealth management services and open-architecture products. In addition, in Germany, Deutsche Oppenheim Family Offices AG provides family office services, discretionary funds and advisory solutions.
The expansion of digital capabilities remains a strong focus across the businesses as a significant change in client behavior towards digital channels is observed. The Private Bank will continue to optimize the omni-channel mix in the future to provide customers with the most convenient access to products and services.
Asset Management
Asset Management consists of DWS Group GmbH & Co. KGaA, a global asset manager with diverse investment capabilities that spans traditional active and passive strategies, as well as alternative solutions.
DWS strategy is composed of four strategic elements; Growth, Value, Build and Reduce, which are aligned to its capabilities and market growth prospects. DWS sees additional market potential especially in Alternatives investments and Passive funds, represented by the Xtrackers brand.
The growth strategy is built on the potential in Passive and Alternatives businesses. DWS’ Passive segment, represented by the Xtrackers brand, sees sustained and profitable growth potential. Building on the franchise and European business, DWS has decided to invest in a U.S. growth plan including sustainable, thematic, and actively managed ETFs. Further, DWS sees a strong demand for mandates in Asia Pacific, and therefore plans to expand its customized mandates business. In 2024, DWS successfully expanded the Xtrackers offering in the European UCITS segment, launched further Passive ETFs in the United States and established a portfolio management team in Hong Kong.
DWS serves a diverse client base of retail and institutional investors worldwide, with a strong presence in the bank’s home market in Germany. These clients include large government institutions, corporations and foundations as well as individual investors. As a regulated asset manager, DWS acts as a fiduciary for clients and is conscious of its societal impact.
Deutsche Bank retains 79.49% ownership interest in DWS, and asset management remains a core business for the company.
Products and Services
DWS offers individuals and institutions access to investment capabilities across all major asset classes in active equity, fixed income, cash, multi asset and systematic and quantitative investments as well as passive investments including Xtrackers range and alternative investments. Alternative investments include real estate, infrastructure, liquid real assets and sustainable investments. In addition, DWS’s solution strategies are targeted to client needs that cannot be addressed by traditional asset classes alone. Such services include insurance and pension solutions, asset-liability management, portfolio management solutions and asset allocation advisory.
Distribution Channels and Marketing
DWS product offerings are managed by a global investment platform and distributed across EMEA, the Americas and Asia Pacific through a global distribution network. DWS also leverages third-party distribution channels, including other divisions of Deutsche Bank Group.
Loan Portfolio
As of December 31, 2024, the company’s loan portfolio included German and Non – German loan, such as agriculture, forestry and fishing; mining and quarrying; manufacturing; electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply; water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation activities; construction; wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles; transport and storage; accommodation and food service activities; information and communication; financial and insurance activities; real estate activities; professional, scientific and technical activities; administrative and support service activities; public administration and defense, compulsory social security; education; human health services and social work activities; arts, entertainment and recreation; other service activities; activities of households as employers, undifferentiated goods- and services-producing activities of households for own use; activities of extraterritorial organizations and bodies. It loans portfolio also included fixed rate and floating or adjustable-rate loans.
Investment Portfolio
As of December 31, 2024, the company’s investment portfolio included debt securities, such as German government, the U.S. Treasury and the U.S government agencies, U.S. local (municipal) governments, Corporates, Other asset-backed securities, Mortgage-backed securities, including obligations of U.S. federal agencies, and other debt securities.
Deposits
The company offers uninsured time deposits.
Regulation and Supervision
Deutsche Bank is subject to comprehensive regulation under German law and regulations promulgated by the European Union which are directly applicable law in Germany.
For the U.S., Deutsche Bank maintains a cyber security and data privacy program that complies with the Gramm Leach Bliley Act as well as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and New York Department of Financial Services rules.
With respect to its regulated activities in the UK, and the continued operation of its London Branch, Deutsche Bank AG is authorized by the PRA and subject to regulation by the FCA and limited regulation by the PRA.
Deutsche Bank’s operations are subject to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the ‘Dodd-Frank Act’) and its implementing regulations, including the Dodd-Frank Act provisions known as the ‘Volcker Rule,’ which limit the ability of banking entities and their affiliates to engage as principal in certain types of proprietary trading and to sponsor or invest in private equity or hedge funds or similar funds (‘covered funds’), subject to certain exclusions and exemptions.
Deutsche Bank AG as well as its wholly owned subsidiary DB USA Corporation are bank holding companies under the U.S. Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended (the ‘Bank Holding Company Act’), by virtue of, among other things, their ownership of Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas (DBTCA). Deutsche Bank AG and DB USA Corporation has elected to be financial holding companies pursuant to the provisions of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (the ‘GLB Act’). As a bank holding company and financial holding company, Deutsche Bank’s U.S. operations are subject to regulation, supervision and examination by the Federal Reserve Board as Deutsche Bank’s U.S. ‘umbrella supervisor’.
The German Co-Determination Act of 1976 (Mitbestimmungsgesetz) requires that the shareholders elect half of the members of the supervisory board of large German companies, such as Deutsche Bank, and that employees in Germany elect the other half.
In the United States, Deutsche Bank’s U.S.-registered broker-dealer subsidiaries are regulated by the SEC. Deutsche Bank’s principal U.S. SEC-registered broker-dealer subsidiary, Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., is a member of the NYSE (and other securities exchanges) and is regulated by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (‘FINRA’) and the individual state securities authorities in the states in which it operates.
Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. is also registered with and regulated by the SEC as an investment adviser, and by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the National Futures Association as a futures commission merchant and commodity pool operator.
History
Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft was founded in 1870. The company was incorporated in 1952.
