Germany’s financial regulator BaFin has turned its attention to Deutsche Bank after IT problems at subsidiary Postbank triggered serious customer service issues. A special representative has now been appointed to ensure that Deutsche Bank resolves the problems at Postbank and DSL Bank quickly and completely. BaFin said the move is intended to protect the collective interests of consumers.
Complaints linked to the IT migration have mounted in recent months, especially since the merger of data from around 12 million Postbank customers and 7 million Deutsche Bank customers onto a shared platform following Easter 2022. Problems also affected protected bank accounts for debt enforcement and the payout of home construction loans through DSL Bank.
Deutsche Bank CEO Christian Sewing apologized for the disruption and said measures had been introduced to improve customer service. He stated that normal operations in critical areas such as protected accounts were expected to be restored during October. Around 400 additional staff were deployed in customer service, with more full-time employees set to join in October to help reduce processing delays.
Deutsche Bank said it plans to work closely with BaFin and the special representative in order to meet the expectations of regulators and affected customers as quickly as possible. The move marks an important step in rebuilding trust and improving service while the bank works through the backlog caused by the IT problems.