The Crisis Is Escalating?

Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank are presently in the process of merger talks. The fact that these meetings are occurring is a signal that Germany’s banking troubles are indeed accelerating.

They are desperately seeking ways to cut costs and improve profitability. These plans include restructuring and job cuts using highly unconventional measures. Last June (2016), Reuters cited anonymous sources as saying that Commerzbank was exploring the option of hoarding billions of euros in vaults as a way of avoiding paying a penalty to the European Central Bank, which is due because of negative interest rates.

Their main problems are derived mostly from both low and negative interest rates. These lenders are used to depending on interest rate margins for income, while offering some services to depositors at either low or no cost. Low interest rates have significantly eroded these banks’ abilities to make money. It has become difficult for German banks to give incentives to their customers to encourage customers to keep money in their financial institutions. These inefficiencies, and the intense competition within the German banking sector, have already led to serious financial difficulties. If one combines these factors with the new challenge of declining interest rates, what possible positive impact can they expect to incur?

Interestingly, rates are not just low within the context of American history, but they also happen to be at their lowest levels – ever – in over 5,000 years of civilization.

5,000 Years Of Interest Rates – Rates Lower Than 1930’s Depression Era

Deutsche Bank is not merely Germany’s biggest bank, but the political role that it plays in Germany is unique when compared to other countries. Deutsche Bank’s importance to Germany is many times greater than that of an investment bank like Lehman Brothers was to the U.S. in 2008. Deutsche Bank is technically a private bank, however, it is informally tied to the government and formally tied to most major German corporations. The bank’s fate will have an impact on all of Germany.