Deutsche Bank Taps the Brakes on Its Global Ambitions

It’s been reorganized and recapitalized, refocused and rebooted. For the better part of a decade, Deutsche Bank AG has been trying to retool itself for a tamer era of more regulation and less risk-taking. Now, as Germany’s biggest lender installs yet another chief executive officer, it’s facing the same old existential question: Should it focus more on rebuilding its domestic banking franchises, rather than continue trying to be Europe’s world-beating answer to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.?

Shareholders have been waiting years for Deutsche Bank to figure out what kind of bank it wants to be. Its European rivals have emerged from the post-crisis gloom poised to reap the benefits of a growing economy. France’s BNP Paribas SA said in February it may beat its profitability target in 2020 thanks to rising loan volumes in its home market. Swiss banking giants UBS Group AG and Credit Suisse Group AG have refocused on wealth management. And in Italy, the shares of top lender UniCredit SpA have returned about 25 percent in the last 12 months. Over the same period, the Euro Stoxx Banks Index has risen modestly—and Deutsche Bank shares are down about 25 percent.