Deutsche Bank may Close Retail Branches

Deutsche Bank may reduce the number of its branch outlets. The retail banking sector has the “greatest need for consolidation,” company CEO Josef Ackermann told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. “We still have too many branch offices. Our costs are too high, and profits too low.” The bank expects to earn a billion pretax euros a year in the retail sector, but that isn’t enough, Ackermann said. He denies that there will be further personnel cuts, however. “We have no plans for notable personnel reductions and no big plans for restructuring. That phase is behind us. Now, we need to work on profits,” he said.