Deutsche Bank to cut one in three jobs at retail banking hubs

Deutsche has lost money for the past five years and has been trying to reverse its fortunes through an overhaul by cutting costs

Deutsche Bank is planning to cut one in three jobs at its retail banking hubs in Frankfurt and Bonn as part of its efforts to cut costs and restore profitability, according to a letter to staff seen by Reuters.

"We will only make our private customer business in Germany profitable and sustainable if we continue to reduce costs significantly. To achieve this, we will have to take further measures", the letter signed by Deutsche Bank board member Karl von Rohr said.

The 350 redundancies affecting mainly the Postbank retail banking arm will be made by the end of 2022 and will be carried out in the most socially acceptable way possible, the letter said.

Deutsche Bank declined to comment.

Deutsche has lost money for the past five years and has been trying to reverse its fortunes through an overhaul by shedding staff and cutting costs.

The bank has hoped to lean more heavily on its divisions serving private customers and corporations, and less on the investment bank, but revenue growth has stagnated amid the pandemic, low interest rates and fierce competition.