Deutsche Bank Restores Bonuses for Top Executives -- Update

--Executive bonuses restored after bank posts first annual profit in four years

--Deutsche expects 2019 revenue increase

--Deutsche is considering strategic opportunities, CEO Christian Sewing said in a letter to shareholders. On Sunday, the bank said it had entered talks on a potential merger with Commerzbank

 
   By Pietro Lombardi

Deutsche Bank AG's (DBK.XE) top executives received bonuses for the first time in four years in 2018 after the bank returned to profit following a period of management and strategy changes.

In 2018, the management board received total compensation of 55.7 million euros ($63.5 million), up from EUR29.8 million in the previous year. Chief Executive Christian Sewing received total compensation of EUR7 million, more than double the EUR3.4 million that the previous CEO, John Cryan, was paid in 2017.

The bonuses come after the bank posted its first annual profit in 2018 following three consecutive years of losses and declining revenues. The bank last paid bonuses to top executives in 2014, it said in its annual report published Friday.

Deutsche's employees received variable compensation based on performance of EUR1.9 billion in total, down from the EUR2.3 billion in 2017.

Germany's largest lender, which has been struggling with a weak growth environment, said it expects revenue to rise this year, supported by slightly higher revenue at its corporate and investment bank division.

Deutsche Bank is not yet in the shape it wants to be and is considering strategic opportunities, Mr. Sewing said in the letter to shareholders. On Sunday, the bank said it had entered talks on a potential merger with Commerzbank AG (CBK.XE).

"The basis for any decisions must be to improve the growth and return profile of the bank," Mr. Sewing said regarding strategic decisions. "We intend to analyze our options with the same commercial discipline we brought to our strategic and operational decisions in 2018," he said.

Looking ahead, Deutsche confirmed its return-on-tangible-equity target of more than 4% in 2019. Revenue at its core corporate and investment bank is seen improving.

"While financial market conditions in our sales and trading businesses have improved significantly in the first quarter of 2019 compared to the turbulent environment we saw in the fourth quarter of 2018, activity levels are relatively muted on a historical comparison," Mr. Sewing said.

Revenue at the bank's private and commercial bank division, as well as at its asset management business, are seen essentially flat on the previous year.

Write to Pietro Lombardi at pietro.lombardi@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 22, 2019 05:43 ET (09:43 GMT)

Deutsche Bank Aktiengese... (NYSE:DB)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024