Deutsche Bank CIB

Deutsche Bank CIB is the Corporate and Investment Banking division of the large German bank, Deutsche Bank. It is quite a new investment banking operation, having been set up in the 1990s. In that time it has managed to establish itself as one of the most important investment banking operations in Europe. There are two divisions within Deutsche Bank CIB, Global Markets and Global Banking.

Global Markets is the trading division. It has been involved in debt and equity trading and has quite a large presence in derivatives trading. Despite winning many awards in the last few years, Global Markets has seen two large cost cutting programs losing a couple of thousand traders.

Global Banking is the investment banking division of Deutsche Bank. There is a major and growing Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) division. It also has a significant presence in continental Europe with Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) which as well as equity also includes debt, both for corporate bonds and for higher yield debt.

Global Transaction Banking is also within the Global Banking franchise. This deals with international trade, dealing with currency conversion, currency futures and foreign debt insurance. Deutsche Bank has always had a strong presence in this area due to Germany’s long standing status as a strong exporter. It has a particular specialty in cash management where it is a market leader and has won a number of awards.

Deutsche Bank was a domestically focussed commercial bank, without much of an investment banking presence. This was enhanced in the 1980s and 1990s by the acquisition of well known banking names such as Morgan Grenfell and Bankers Trust. In 2001 Deutsche Bank listed itself on the New York Stock Exchange, strengthening its American presence. It is still listed there with the call sign DB. A large part of its international presence is centered in London.

Deutsche Bank also has a Private Client and Asset Management (PCAM) division which is not under the Corporate and Investment Banking umbrella. This deals with the investment and banking needs of high net worth individuals.

Deutsche Bank has always been an internationally focussed bank, being founded in 1870 in Berlin as a specialist in international trade. The banking licence from the Prussian government laid a strong stress on international trade. Due to the desire for industrial expansion, Deutsche Bank was for a long time favoured. Its first branches in Germany opened in 1871 while its first foreign branch opened in Shanghai, where there was a large German community, in 1872. It opened a branch in London, then as now an international financial center, in 1873.

Deutsche Bank was involved in railway funding, but was also involved in Nazi policies in the 1930s and in the Second World War. It was broken down into three regional banks as part of the peace terms that ended the war, eventually consolidating into three banks and merging back into Deutsche Bank in 1957. Mergers have continued both in the foreign market, looking to fill in gaps in its international investment banking presence as well as domestic German retail banks. It has never looked to getting a “merger of equals” with another similarly sized bank, always looking for smaller banks on which it can impose its culture and fill in gaps in its expertise rather than have to change its own successful culture.