Deutsche shakes up board

January 30, 2002 Posted: 1651 GMT

LONDON (CNN) -- Deutsche Bank broke with tradition on Wednesday, scrapping its consensus-driven management style and giving its chief executive more power.

Germany's biggest bank also said it was cutting its management board to five members from eight and creating a new executive committee to handle day-to-day decisions.

The new structure is expected to streamline operations at Deutsche Bank and speed up question-making, allowing it to compete more aggressively with U.S.-based banks.

Details of the changes will be announced on Thursday, when the bank also reports its 2001 results.

While the announcement of the new structure was greeted favourably by most analysts, it is uncertain how quickly the changes will be implemented.

"I think we will see a change toward the Anglo-Saxon model, but I don't think it will go all the way," Chris Gentle, an analyst at Deloitte Consulting, told CNN.

"I think it will be gradual. The consensus model in Germany is very, very powerful but it is changing."

Swiss-born Josef Ackerman will succeed Rolf Breuer as chief executive in May. Ackerman, currently in charge of Deutsche's investment banking business, is the first non-German to head the bank.

Ackerman has been an outspoken advocate for structural reform at the bank.

Deutsche also announced on Wednesday that Thomas Fischer, its chief risk officer, would leave the management board immediately.

"The departure by mutual agreement is related to differing opinions about the bank's new leadership structure," the bank said in a statement.

It also said management board members Juergen Fitschen, head of transaction banking, and Michael Philipp, head of asset management, would leave the management board but remain in charge of their respective areas.

"I think given the changes they've made to the personalities, I think it will be more difficult for the traditional board management members to hold out against decisions made by the heads of the major product lines when they are arguing for it in this executive committee," Jonathan Ford, of BreakingViews, told CNN.

Deutsche's shares fell 3.6 percent to 70.60 in late trading on Wednesday in Frankfurt.