Giants of a bank under discussion after government pressure

Deutsche Bank AG, the once dominant financial institution in Europe, threw in the towel after years of unsuccessful recovery attempts and decided to start merger talks with Commerzbank AG backed by the German government.

The leaders of Deutsche Bank do not hide their problems: mbadive layoffs, political turmoil, weakening of the European economy, US investigation of its relations with Donald Trump and Herculean integration – not to mention its skeptical customers and investors – to treat .

"I have always insisted that the consolidation of the German and European banking sector was an important topic for us," said Deutsche Bank President Christian Sewing in a letter to employees. "We need to evaluate how we want to play a role in its design."

The companies confirmed the move to more in-depth discussions in statements released yesterday, limiting months of speculation and behind-the-scenes discussions with the German Finance Ministry. (Bloomberg)

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