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Deutsche Bank profit dip

March 20, 2013

Germany's biggest lender, Deutsche Bank, has admitted that writedowns and legal costs have had a bigger impact on earnings than originally expected. Net profit looked meager, if compared to 2011 levels.

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The headquarters of Deutsche Bank is seen next to a traffic sign in Frankfurt, Germany Photo:Michael Probst/AP/dapd).
Image: AP

Deutsche Bank said Wednesday it was forced to restate its earnings after unaudited preliminary 2012 results had to be altered.

"New developments related to specific existing legal matters have occurred after the disclosure of preliminary results on January 31," Deutsche Bank said in a statement.

The lender said it had increased its provisions for litigation by 600 million euros ($774 million) to a total of 2.4 billion euros.

Reputation at stake?

"This reduced the previously announced income before taxes by 600 million euros and net income by 400 million euros," the lender reported in Frankfurt. Bottom-line profit came in at just 291 million euros last year, marking a hefty 93-percent drop from 2011 levels.

Deutsche Bank cited litigation issue with regard to US mortgage loans. But the lender is also being investigated over allegations that some of its employees may have been involved in rigging the Libor and Euribor interest rates.

And one of the lender's co-chief executives, Jürgen Fitschen, is under suspicion of being privy to a scheme to avoid paying sales tax in the trading of carbon emissions certificates.

hg/dr   (AFP, Reuters, dpa)

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