‘We’re sick of bad news,’ says German bank boss

The new boss of deutsche Bank has admitted that the company is ‘sick and tired of bad news’ amid growing fears for its future.

Christian Sewing, the German who took over from yorkshireman John Cryan in April, conceded that the past few years had been tough but pledged to turn the institution around.

it came as the bank, which is the largest in Germany and a major City employer with 8,000 UK staff, suffered a fresh blow yesterday when ratings agency Standard and Poor’s cut its credit rating.

S&P said that its massive restructuring plans mean deutsche is likely to lag behind rivals, most of whom have finished turnaround programmes started after the financial crisis.

The credit downgrade follows revelations that deutsche’s US business has been put on a watch list of risky banks by American authorities.

deutsche shares have plunged more than 40pc this year and are now worth less than €10 (£8.74) each, in a value range dominated by highly volatile small-cap stocks.

in a frank memo to staff, Sewing said: ‘Many of you are sick and tired of bad news. That’s exactly how i feel. But there’s no reason for us to be discouraged. yes, our share price is at a historic low. But we’ll prove that we have earned a better valuation on the financial markets. We’ve achieved a lot we can be proud of.’

Sewing is planning to axe 7,000 jobs with the cuts likely to fall hardest on the once-feted investment bank.