Deutsche Bank fined almost US$10m over Euribor controls

[FRANKFURT] German financial regulator BaFin has fined Deutsche Bank nearly US$10 million for controls related to the Euribor interest rate in a setback for the nation's largest lender as it seeks to restore its reputation.

The US$9.77 million fine announced on Wednesday (Dec 29) is the first imposed by BaFin under a 2018 regulation that seeks to prevent manipulation of Euribor, the Euro Interbank Offered Rate benchmark used in the financial industry.

"The bank at times did not have in place effective preventive systems, controls and policies," BaFin said.

Deutsche Bank said it accepted the fine and had implemented measures to improve its controls regarding Euribor.

The bank added that there was no reason to believe it had made incorrect rate submissions to the benchmark administrator.

The period in question was between April 2019 and April 2020, a source with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

BaFin found flaws in certain processes meant to safeguard the quality of data used to calculate the rate, including weaknesses in regular controls and other organisational precautions, the source said.

The bank has been subject to numerous regulatory and legal investigations over the past decade. This has included rate-rigging allegations that have involved multiple global banks.

In April BaFin ordered Deutsche Bank to implement further safeguards to prevent money laundering.

Under new leadership, BaFin has itself been trying to restore its image after it failed to spot wrongdoing ahead of the collapse last year of German payments company Wirecard.

REUTERS