Germany's Savings Banks to go Global

Germany's state-backed savings banks want to establish a globally operating institute as a sort of umbrella organization for all the banks' international business. The president of the German Savings Banks Association (DSGV), Dietrich Hoppenstedt, in an interview with the business daily Handelsblatt said: " The global institute of the savings banks financial group would consist of a cooperation among various specialists, all of whom have a strong footing regionally in private banking." Until now, 11 state banks have shared the national and international business in Germany and abroad. According to Handelsblatt, two working groups are already busy with projects to increase the earnings and efficiency of the state banks. They are expected to present their first set of results by the end of the year. "It'll be good for the German economy to have an international champion anchored in the regional markets," Hoppenstedt told the paper. He added that Deutsche Bank doesn't concentrate on the domestic market anymore, while other private banks aren't positioned strongly enough internationally to operate globally as the savings banks intend to do.