Deutsche considers next board dismissal

Deutsche Bank chief operating officer Kim Hammonds’s future at the lender is uncertain, a little over a week after the dismissal of the CEO, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

Concerns about slow progress in upgrading the bank’s information technology systems — together with unhappiness at controversial statements made by Hammonds — have led to scepticism among supervisory board members and the bank’s management that she is the right person for the job, the people said asking not to be identified discussing private details.

The supervisory board has not yet taken a decision on her future at the company, they said. But her departure, if it comes, could happen very soon, two people said.

Hammonds has struggled to bring the bank’s technology costs down and they rose fractionally in 2017 to €3.8bn from €3.78bn in 2016.

She defended her record recently by saying she has cut the number of operating systems used by the bank by nearly one-third and cut the bank’s reliance on external staff.

Her internal standing was damaged recently when she called Deutsche Bank “the most dysfunctional company” she had ever worked for at an internal event, according to people briefed on the matter.

John Cryan was replaced as CEO on April 8 by Christian Sewing. Marcus Schenck, a former deputy co-CEO, is also leaving the bank.