This publication recently caught up with Deutsche Bank's international private bank head at the London Frieze Art Fair, and delved into the details of how the lender is building out offerings in Europe and further afield.

Deutsche’s “bank for entrepreneurs” offering showcases how the commercial and wealth management sides of the group can dovetail to suit the needs of clients whose business and private needs often intersect. 

The Frankfurt-listed bank has so far rolled out its “bank for entrepreneurs” model in Spain and Italy and plans to extend this to other European locations and then to Asia-Pacific, Claudio de Sanctis, who is the head of the international private bank and CEO Deutsche Bank EMEA, told this publication recently.

The business model is constructed so that the bank can serve entrepreneurs, such as those running medium-sized firms, across all areas and for the entrepreneur to view the bank as a single entity.

“First leading indicators [of the Spanish and Italian businesses] are very positive and we will roll this out in select locations,” he said. This “bank for entrepreneurs” offering has already generated a buzz; the firm is getting enquiries from other private bankers interested in coming on board, de Sanctis told this news service. He spoke at the recent London Frieze Art Fair, for which Deutsche Bank is the main sponsor.

“The 'bank for entrepreneurs' refers to the integration of wealth management coverage and commercial bankers to cater to family-owned large Italian and Spanish companies and SMEs. The integration aims to provide holistic banking services at every stage of our entrepreneurial client’s life and business cycle, from business needs such as lending and corporate finance to advising on their private wealth management needs,” he said. 

Part of the attraction, so Deutsche Bank will hope, is in giving clients access to its balance sheet and expertise across all divisions. This is a challenging area to succeed in, particularly given pressures on investment banking in recent years and the need to control risk exposures.

Hard numbers 
Overall figures at the international private bank have been broadly positive, rising 6 per cent year-on-year in the third quarter of 2021 to come in at €803 million ($927 million). Within private banking and wealth management, revenues rose 2 per cent when adjusted for specific items and the impact of foreign exchange movements. The group logged positive net new asset growth for the seventh quarter in a row, with €3.1 billon during the third quarter. The first nine months of the year saw net inflows of €16.8 billion, up 137 per cent on a year ago. And the bank hired more than 150 wealth management professionals globally in the first nine months of the year.

Affluent
For the “affluent” business, Deutsche Bank’s international private bank is focussed on the shift from a broad retail offering in Italy and Spain to a more focused offering for affluent clients, de Sanctis said. “Spain is leading the charge, ahead of Italy, which will see the creation of enhanced digital services and a number of flagship branches in strategic locations, more tailored to the needs of the affluent client segment.”

“We expect the growth outlook for the IPB to largely stem from the bank for entrepreneurs and the UHNW business across every metric. For the affluent segment, we expect this to grow after we have developed the platform. We may see in three to five years that the growth from this segment could match our other two strategic pillars,” he continued.