Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft

On May 13, 2020, media outlets reported that the Federal Reserve had criticized Deutsche Bank's U.S. operations in an internal audit.  The audit reportedly found that Deutsche Bank had failed to address multiple concerns identified years earlier, including concerns related to the Bank's AML and other control procedures.

On this news, the Company’s share price fell $0.31 per share, or over 4%, to close at $6.60 per share on May 13, 2020.

Then, on July 7, 2020, the Federal Reserve's criticism of Deutsche Bank's failure to address its AML and other issues was reaffirmed when the New York State Department of Financial Services fined the Bank $150 million for neglecting to flag numerous questionable transactions from accounts associated with Jeffrey Epstein and two correspondent banks, Danske Estonia and FBME Bank, both of which were the subjects of prior scandals involving financial misconduct.

On this news, the Company’s share price fell $0.13 per share, or over 1%, to close at $9.82 per share on July 7, 2020.

The complaint filed in this class action alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements, as well as failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Company’s business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, Defendants failed to disclose to investors: (1) that Deutsche Bank had failed to remediate deficiencies related to AML, its disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting, and its U.S. operations’ troubled condition; (2) that as a result, the Bank failed to properly monitor customers that the Bank itself deemed to be high risk, including, among others, the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein (“Epstein”) and two correspondent banks, Danske Estonia and FBME Bank, which were both the subjects of prior scandals involving financial misconduct; (3) that the foregoing, once revealed, was foreseeably likely to have a material negative impact on the Bank’s financial results and reputation; and (4) as a result, the Bank’s public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times.