Deutsche Bank to mull joint compliance platform to cut cost

Deutsche Bank is considering teaming up with other German banks to set up a joint platform for know-your-customer (KYC) information, according to two people briefed on the matter.

The Frankfurt-based lender is in talks with Commerzbank and two unlisted German banks, Landesbank Baden-Wuerttemberg and Landesbank Hessen Thueringen, to bundle some information on German corporate clients in a single location, the people said, asking not to be identified because the discussions are private.

The participating banks hope to make a decision in the coming months whether to go ahead with the project, one person said.

Deutsche Bank Chief Executive Officer John Cryan has repeatedly singled out compliance as an area where automation could help save costs. The lender said earlier this year that know-your-customer rules have become so expensive that they force banks to reduce activities in some areas, for example financing in developing countries.

The joint project, which was reported earlier Monday by Sueddeutsche Zeitung, comes less than a month after Deutsche Bank announced it is partnering with IBM on a blockchain-based KYC platform that lets banks collect and share client information.