Deutsche Bank posts best profits in a decade in sea change for ailing lender

German banking giant Deutsche Bank smashed expectations to deliver its best profits for a decade, the lender announced today.

Rampant global deal making driven by investors and firms rushing to deploy a wave of idle cash to snap up companies boosted Deutsche Bank’s bottom line.

Profits climbed more than fourfold over the last year to hit €2.5bn (£2.1bn), its best performance since 2011 and up from €624 (£521m) in 2020.

The historically high profit take marks a sharp swing in fortunes for Germany’s biggest lender, which has been mired in scandals and years of underperformance.

Most recently, BaFin, Germany’s finance watchdog, slapped Deutsche Bank with £7m for weak rate-rigging controls.

The bank was also hit with a £120m fine by US prosecutors in 2020 for failing to effectively monitor its relationship with convicted and now deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The lender has also been slammed for allowing dirty money to flow through the European financial system.

However, the latest set of results represents a sea change at the bank.

Analysts had been pencilling in a fourth quarter loss. But, Deutsche Bank actually posted €315m (£263m) in profits.

Deutsche Bank’s advisory unit, which consults parties involved in a takeover, was the stand out performer within the banking behemoth.

Revenues climbed 156 per cent over the last quarter and more than doubled over the last year to €491m (£410m).

The business climate last year was marked by rampant deal making driven by firms and private equity firms taking advantage of the ultra low interest rate environment to snap up competitors.

PE funds also unleashed a wave of dry powder amassed in the years running up to the Covid-19 crisis.

Christian Sewing, chief executive of Deutsche Bank, said: “In 2021, we increased our net profit fourfold and delivered our best result in ten years while putting almost all of our expected transformation costs behind us.”