Deutsche Bank AG Chief Executive Officer Christian Sewing said he’s open to more deals after surprising investors with the acquisition of UK corporate broker Numis Corp.
Growing “organically is the prime way but if we have opportunities like with Numis, we’ll see, we’re not closing our eyes,” Sewing said in a Bloomberg Television interview in London office on Thursday.
Deutsche Bank agreed almost two months ago to buy Numis — one of the best-known UK boutiques — in a change of pace for a CEO who has focused more in recent years on cost cutting and cautious growth. Valued at £410 million ($523 million), the deal is the firm’s largest since the 2009 purchase of German retail lender Postbank and takes it from a few dozen bankers focused on UK offerings to one of the biggest teams in the City.
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The deal has raised questions from analysts about Deutsche Bank’s ability to return money to shareholders. Paying out about 8 billion euros to investors over several years is a core promise of Sewing’s current strategy. He said in the interview that he’s committed to that promise and that any deals wouldn’t jeopardize it.
After a multiyear restructuring effort, Deutsche Bank has been pushing back into a few more volatile businesses and is taking advantage of a slump in dealmaking to pick up top bankers. The lender is seeking to be opportunistic while not turning away shareholders who’ve been looking for steadier returns to lift the share price.
“We looked at Numis for a long, long time,” Sewing said in the interview. “And yes, we kept the secret quite well. We think it’s an optimal addition to our business mix and our offering in Europe and in particular in the UK.”
