Deutsche Bank pumps Rs 5,113 crore capital into India operations

Mumbai: German lender Deutsche Bank on Wednesday announced that it has infused an additional capital of Rs 5,113 crore into its India operations.

This is the largest capital allocation to India in recent years and will be used for expanding across business lines, including corporate banking, investment banking and private banking, according to a Deutsche Bank statement.

The lender has been present in India for the last 45 years and the balance sheet size stood at Rs 1.45 lakh crore as of March 31, 2024, making it one of the largest foreign banks in the country. It has 17 branches in the country.

The fresh infusion marks a 33 per cent jump in the capital buffer over the 2023 levels and increases the regulatory capital of Deutsche Bank AG India branches to nearly Rs 30,000 crore, the statement said, adding that the same has grown three times in the last decade.

"India is well positioned to benefit substantially from many of today's most important trends reshaped supply chains, digitisation of industries, increased geopolitical frictions and global demographic changes, among others.

"Consequently, we see enormous potential," its chief executive officer for Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and Germany, Alexander von zur Muehlen said.

Muehlen, who is also a member of the management board for the lender, said India is a critical growth market for it and the lender has boosted the capital allocation in India to enable expansion and further deepening its presence.

The bank affirmed its commitment to support India's growth, especially in areas such as digital transformation, sustainable finance, technology and infrastructure development.

Its country chief executive officer Kaushik Shaparia called the infusion a strong validation of confidence in the business model and potential in India.

The statement said the capital will be only for its branches in the country and excludes other entities operating in the country.

Deutsche Bank had infused Rs 2,700 crore of capital into India operations in 2020, and Rs 3,800 crore in 2019.

In FY24, its profit after tax jumped 35 per cent to Rs 1,977 crore, up from Rs 1,467 crore in FY23, and the capital adequacy stood at 16.26 per cent as of March 31, 2024. Its deposits had grown by nearly 10 per cent while the advances moved up by 5.32 per cent in the fiscal year.

The year also saw a massive improvement in the bank's asset quality, with net non-performing assets ratio improving to 0.32 per cent from 0.91 per cent in the year-ago period.