Deutsche Bank's Moreau Said to Zero In on New German Office

(Bloomberg) -- Deutsche Bank AG’s asset management division has narrowed its search for office space in Frankfurt to two new developments, people briefed on the matter said.

The division head, Nicolas Moreau, personally visited the luxurious Omniturm and the dual development Marienturm and Marienforum, all slated for completion next year or in early 2019, two people said, asking not to be identified discussing the private plan. They said Moreau intends to move 1,200 to 1,400 employees from their current location in Frankfurt, a purpose-built office building shared with the investment bank.

A spokesman for Deutsche Bank declined to comment.

Deutsche Bank is looking for office space that can hold as many as 1,600 people, Bloomberg reported earlier this month. Moving the division will free up space for new investment bankers expected to arrive in Frankfurt in the wake of the U.K.’s decision to leave the European Union. It will also underscore the asset management unit’s increased independence after a partial public listing that is likely to happen around April, one of the people said.

No decision on any move or the unit’s future office space has been made, and other options, such as the office building Die Welle, are also under consideration, the person said.

Frankfurt has been a popular choice among banks seeking to expand within the EU as they prepare for the U.K.’s departure. Morgan Stanley recently signed a lease in Omniturm in downtown Frankfurt, while Goldman Sachs Group Inc. will move into Marienturm, a high rise under construction next to the current offices of Deutsche Bank’s asset management division.

Deutsche Bank expects to raise about 2 billion euros ($2.4 billion) from selling a quarter of its asset management business in an initial public offering, Bloomberg reported this month. The partial offering would value the unit at about 8 billion euros and account for substantially all the capital the bank had expected to raise through asset sales under a turnaround plan unveiled in March.

The unit had 2,500 employees at the end of 2016, according to the lender’s Human Resources Report, but that figure has jumped to around 4,000 as the division has carved out back office functions from its parent in preparation for the IPO, according to one person.

To contact the reporter on this story: Steven Arons in Frankfurt at sarons@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Dale Crofts at dcrofts@bloomberg.net, Cindy Roberts

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