Deutsche Bank has reported a net profit of 401 million euros ($468 million ) in the second quarter of the year, down 14 percent year-on-year, but in line with what the bank had signaled last week.
The German lender said last Monday that its second-quarter results would be significantly above market expectations, in accordance with German regulations. These dictate that listed businesses must notify markets if consensus forecasts are out of line. As a result, Deutsche said last week that it was expecting to hit a net income of approximately 400 million euros for the second quarter of 2018. Analysts were forecasting then a net income of 321 million euros.
Here are some key highlights:
- Profit before tax of 711 million euros ($830.48 million), down 13 percent on the year.
- Net income of 401 million euros ($468.39 million)
- Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio increased to 13.7 percent from 13.4 percent in the previous quarter
Christian Sewing, chief executive officer of the bank, said in a statement: “In the second quarter we accelerated the reshaping of our bank significantly and proved the resilience of our global business. We’re making important changes to our core businesses as promised, we’re headed in the right direction on costs, and our balance sheet quality is strong.”
One of the most significant changes has been to its workforce. As part of Deutsche Bank’s restructuring plans, the number of internal employees stood at 95,429 at the end of the quarter, the lowest level since 2010. Nonetheless, the bank said it is committed to continue reducing its workforce as part of the measures presented last April. As a result, 2,100 people have lost their job since the start of the year and the aim is to bring the number of workers down to 93,000 by the end of the year.
Deutsche Bank went through a management reshuffle last April, when Christian Sewing moved from the private and commercial side of the bank to chief executive. As a result, at the time of the appointment many analysts questioned the future of the investment banking arm of Deutsche Bank.
The corporate and investment banking unit reported Wednesday revenues of 3.57 billion euros ($4.17 billion) down from 3.85 billion euros in the first quarter of 2018. Revenues in fixed income sales and trading stood at 1.4 billion euros, down 17 percent year-on-year and equity sales and trading fell 6 percent at 540 million euros.
