Germany''s biggest lender Deutsche Bank will face renewed probing on Thursday, as investors pore over its third-quarter results after being hit with a multi-billion-dollar fine by the US Department of Justice. "It will be important to keep an eye on growth in provisions for legal risks," Equinet analyst Philipp Haessler told AFP. News of a $14-billion demand from the DoJ over Deutsche''s role in the subprime mortgage crisis sent shares in the bank plunging to a historic low of 9.90 euros ($10.75) in late September and reawakened fears for the wider European banking sector.
The figure is far higher than the 5.5 billion euros of provisions Deutsche has set aside to cover some 8,000 outstanding legal cases worldwide. US banks have settled for far less in similar cases, and a source told AFP in late September that Deutsche was in talks on bringing the fine down to around 5.4 billion euros, although the final figure could still change.
Deutsche shares have climbed back to their prior level of around 13 euros - suggesting some confidence has been restored - but it is still down about 40 percent from the start of the year. In June the International Monetary Fund labelled the bank "the most important net contributor to systemic risks in the global banking system". Analysts surveyed by Factset predict that the bank will book a fresh loss of around 950 million euros in the third quarter.
Besides the subprime cases, markets will be watching for signs that chief executive John Cryan''s restructuring is beginning to bear fruit just over a year into his tenure, with the flagship investment banking arm in particular focus. Cryan has withdrawn from a broad swathe of activities and regions, and cut resources at the investment bank. Strong results from US rivals like Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan Chase have put pressure on Deutsche to show it can defend its share of the market.
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