Deutsche Bank faces stormy annual meeting as investors attack board

Handling of Libor scandal prompts questions over leadership of chief executives

Deutsche Bank’s management team is facing an investor backlash at the company’s annual meeting in Frankfurt on Thursday (GETTY IMAGES)

Deutsche Bank’s management team is facing an investor backlash at the company’s annual meeting in Frankfurt on Thursday over its handling of issues including the Libor rigging scandal.

Hermes Equity Ownership Service, which represents less than 0.5 per cent of the bank’s shareholders, said it planned to express its “lack of confidence in the management board” and “strong concerns about a range of issues” by voting against the so-called “discharge of members” – a vote that in effect measures investor confidence in the way German companies are being run.

“We urge the bank’s supervisory board to review the composition of the management board, taking its performance over the last three years and its new strategy into account,” Dr Hans-Christoph Hirt, Hermes EOS director said.

“We have previously queried with the bank itself the suitability of Juergen Fitschen and Anshu Jain, the bank’s two chief executives, to lead Deutsche’s culture change, given their long tenure in key leadership positions including at the Investment Bank.”

Hermes’ gripes include the level of fines imposed on the lender by US and UK regulators as part of the inter-bank lending scandal. Advisory group ISS has also criticised Deutsche Bank’s board, citing an ongoing fraud trial involving Fitschen.