Deutsche Bank is laying off up to 500 employees at its investment bank ahead of its 2017 bonus round, a source has said.
Some senior and mid-ranking bankers have already been given their lay-off notices as part of another round of cost cutting at the German bank. The tally of cuts, which will affect investment bankers and traders, comes to 250 and 500, the person said.
Deutsche announces its 2017 bonus round on March 16, making it one of the latest payers on Wall Street and in the City. Staff that get their marching orders before then will probably be ineligible for 2017 payouts, though there are some regional variations on the exact dates.
The bank declined to comment on the lay-offs. The person stressed that the cuts were not focused on any particular division, and did not relate to the bank’s current trading, which is improving. “It’s part of our cost cuts,” the person said. Bloomberg first reported the story.
Deutsche has cut around 3,500 staff across its operations since 2015, as part of a plan to save €3.8 billion in gross costs from 2015-18. At its 2017 full-year results, the bank admitted it would not make this year’s cost targets, triggering a 6 per cent fall in its share price on the day.
Deutsche’s investment bank has also struggled with weak trading conditions, especially at the end of 2017, as well as damage done to the bank’s brand as it went through capital raises and strategic reviews.
Several executives from other banks have described improved trading conditions in the first quarter of 2018, including Credit Suisse which last week said that its trading revenues were up more than 10 per cent year on year for the first six weeks of 2018.
– Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2018
