The CEO of Deutsche Bank, Christian Sewing, can be satisfied: The figures in the second quarter underline that Germany's largest bank is well on the way to catching up with international competition.
This requires a drastic cure with a reduction of 18,000 jobs, branch closings and the abandonment of business areas.
But the measures are bearing fruit.
With a net profit of 1.6 billion euros, the bank has earned more than it has for six years.
Investment banking, which has long been frowned upon, makes a decisive contribution to this. It is good that a German bank is at the forefront in the international capital market business. The German companies represented all over the world do not only want to be dependent on American addresses. German export companies want to continue to rely on a European investment bank in the future. This also has to be taken into account with a view to the repeated demand for cross-border consolidation.
Knowledge of capital markets must not be left to the Wall Street houses. Deutsche Bank is able to do this. But in order to act in the consolidation from a position of strength, it still has to increase sharply in market value. It was not for nothing that Sewing reminded the employees of the marathon: "At 30 kilometers it starts to get particularly strenuous." The bank has to increase the pace for the remaining 12 kilometers if it wants to play a decisive role in the European consolidation.