Deutsche Bank Senior U.S. Bankers Hantho, Eydenberg Poised to Leave -- Update
June 18 2019 - 3:22PM
Dow Jones News
By Jenny Strasburg
Two of Deutsche Bank AG's top New York deal makers are poised to
leave the embattled lender ahead of impending deep cuts to its Wall
Street investment bank, according to people familiar with the
matter.
The veteran bankers, Mark Hantho and John Eydenberg, are in
advanced negotiations to join Citigroup Inc., the people said. They
would be the most prominent departures from the German lender's
U.S. investment-banking operations this year.
Both bankers have long-established relationships with corporate
executives and private-equity firms from years of competing with
other banks to run initial public offerings and finance buyouts.
Departures of senior bankers can trigger others to leave,
amplifying the blow. Such exits are already a risk at Deutsche
Bank, where strategy is in flux and questions about senior
management won't die.
No deal with Citigroup was final as of Tuesday afternoon, but a
decision could be made this week in one or both cases. Messrs.
Hantho and Eydenberg declined to comment through a Deutsche Bank
spokeswoman. Bank managers have said they are still hiring and
remain committed to the U.S. business.
But bankers and traders are facing prolonged uncertainty over
Deutsche Bank's plans to dismantle large portions of its equities
operations and other parts of the investment bank. Senior managers
have signaled intentions to cut businesses but haven't spelled out
exactly when or what they will ax.
As a result, concern and confusion are gripping the lender,
according to employees and competitors -- and not just in the
U.S.
In New York, Mr. Hantho has been central to Deutsche Bank's role
in share offerings and equities-advisory work for more than a
decade. He has a dual global role coordinating securities
underwriting across all regions, with the title of chairman of
global investment banking and capital markets coverage.
Mr. Eydenberg has longtime relationships with private-equity
firms, among them Apollo Global Management LLC, and is one of the
lead bankers in Deutsche Bank's relationship with Japanese
technology giant SoftBank Group Corp., people close to the bank
said. Investment banks are clamoring for pieces of SoftBank's
business as it aims to raise a second $100 billion Vision Fund
while taking on debt to fund a wave of startup investments.
Mr. Eydenberg has been with Deutsche Bank since 2001, and Mr.
Hantho since 2006.
In London this week, senior equities banker Edward Sankey quit
after almost 15 years at Deutsche Bank to take over as global head
of equity capital markets at HSBC Holdings PLC., according to
people close to the bank. Such departures contrast with Deutsche
Bank's stated goal of maintaining a global network of seasoned deal
makers to advise European companies on mergers and underwriting of
stocks and bonds.
One risk that concerns investors is that planned cutbacks erode
more client relationships and investment bank revenues than
intended. That could backfire on the lender's efforts to cut costs
and money-losing businesses while strengthening stronger ones, over
time stabilizing profits.
Write to Jenny Strasburg at jenny.strasburg@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 18, 2019 15:07 ET (19:07 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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