Deutsche Bank Shuffling Executives Amid CFO Hunt

By Jenny Strasburg 

Deutsche Bank AG is reshuffling more executives while it searches for a new chief financial officer and reshapes global businesses for the second time in 18 months.

The lender's group treasurer since 2009, Alexander von zur Muehlen, will leave that post and return to the investment bank, where he previously worked, according to people familiar with the matter.

The move, to be announced as soon as this week, means Mr. von zur Muehlen will continue working for current CFO Marcus Schenck , who will co-head a newly recombined investment bank once a new CFO is named.

The investment bank, Deutsche Bank's largest division, is being restructured to encompass the trading unit that was split from the deal-advisory and transaction-banking businesses in late 2015.

Plans are being drawn up for new, adjacent offices to be constructed for the investment bank co-heads, Mr. Schenck and current markets chief Garth Ritchie, on the fourth floor of Deutsche Bank's London headquarters, people with knowledge of the plans say. That floor is home to a reduced European stock-trading business.

Mr. von zur Muehlen previously was a senior European debt capital-markets and derivatives banker at Deutsche Bank. His fate as the longtime treasurer has been a subject of speculation inside and outside Deutsche Bank lately because some co-workers and investors saw him as a potential successor to Mr. Schenck as CFO, according to people close to the bank. A Deutsche Bank spokeswoman declined to comment on his behalf.

Deutsche Bank's new treasurer will come from the markets division: Dixit Joshi is moving into the job after overseeing fixed-income sales globally since late 2015, according to people familiar with the pending move. Discussions about the plans were earlier reported by eFinancialCareers.

Mr. Joshi's departure from global markets is the latest example of change in client-facing roles in the investment bank. Deutsche Bank is still narrowing its client roster while trying to win back market share it has lost in key areas.

A number of current employees, including some in the investment bank and trading division, have been discussed as potential CFO candidates, but people close to the bank say Deutsche Bank executives have signaled that an external hire is more likely.

The CFO search is focusing on fluent German speakers with experience in a finance role at a bank or other financial institution, the people said.

The latest investment-bank overhaul has stoked fresh concerns among investors and analysts about distractions from management changes and the depth of experience atop some businesses, people close to the bank say. Some employees say they feel restructuring fatigue, exacerbated by smaller bonuses and a series of banker departures.

Deutsche Bank executives have said they are confident the revamped strategy announced last month is the right one and that an EUR8 billion ($8.5 billion) capital increase has put the lender on firm financial ground.

Write to Jenny Strasburg at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 03, 2017 06:45 ET (10:45 GMT)

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