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IKB Deutsche Industriebank

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IKB Deutsche Industriebank AG
Company typePublic (FWB: IKBG)
IndustryFinancial services
Founded1924
Defunct1974 Edit this on Wikidata
HeadquartersDüsseldorf, Germany
Key people
Dr. Michael H. Wiedmann (CEO and Chairman of the Management Board), Bruno Scherrer (Chairman of the Supervisory Board)
ProductsCorporate and Structured financing, Private Equity
€ 32 million (1 April 2013 to 31 March 2014)[1]
Total assets€ 24,0 billion (30 September 14)[1]
Number of employees
1,442 (average 2013/2014)[1]
ParentLone Star Funds (pending)
Websitewww.ikb.de

IKB Deutsche Industriebank AG (FWB: IKBG) is a bank headquartered in Düsseldorf, Germany. IKB supports medium-sized enterprises in Germany and Europe with loans, risk management, capital market services and advisory services. The online offering for retail banking customers covers overnight and term money, bank savings schemes, bank deposits and selected commercial papers. With total assets of €25.8 billion and about 1450 employees the bank has a medium-size. The bank has ten branches in Germany and Europe as well as different subsidiaries. IKB is listed on Entry Standard (Frankfurt am Main) and primary market (Düsseldorf). Majority shareholder is the investment company Lone Star (9.5% of shares).

Corporation

IKB (Industriekreditbank) was granted its banking license in 1924 as "Bafio" (Bank für deutsche Industrieobligationen, Bank for German Industry Obligations). Bafio dealt in long-term real estate financing in an effort to aid the German economy grow under the weight of the World War I reparations the country owed.

The bank was incorporated under Germany's stock law (Aktiengesetz) in 1945. In 1974 it merged with Deutsche Industriebank to become IKB Deutsche Industriebank.

IKB's main area of business is financing for small and medium enterprises in Germany. In addition to corporate financing, they also undertake real estate financing.

The German government's financing bank, KfW (formerly Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau), owns a 38% stake in IKB.[2] After several months of consideration of the sale of the IKB stake,[3] it was announced on 21 August 2008 that private equity firm Lone Star Funds would acquire an almost 91% holding in the bank.[4]

2007 subprime crisis

Losses

When the subprime market in the United States crashed in the summer of 2007, the global reach of the crisis was not immediately obvious. Several European banks, however, became victims of the crisis due to investment history; IKB was among the first European bank to declare financial trouble due to the subprime disaster.[5][6]

In July 2007, IKB announced that it had been affected by the subprime mortgage financial crisis in the United States. Only a week earlier the bank had released a statement saying it expected to meet its earnings goals for the year. "Rhinebridge", a structured vehicle operated by IKB, had invested heavily in the U.S. subprime market.[7]

To control the effects of the crisis in Germany, KfW, along with numerous commercial and coop banks (including Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank), formed a rescue fund to bail out the group. The funds used to bail out the bank amounted to €3.5 billion. Although IKB's stocks fell drastically, the bank avoided default, and the rescue is credited with having spared the German economy drastic fallout from the subprime crisis.[8] In February 2008, the German government announced that IKB would require another rescue package to remain liquid, largely because peer banks were reluctant to invest further in the bank. The rescue package was announced in mid February at an amount of €1.5 billion.[9] As a result of the losses suffered by IKB, the company was demoted from Deutsche Börse's mid-cap MDAX stock market index to the small-cap SDAX in March 2008.[10]

Investigations and controversy

Misconduct investigation by the Federal Republic of Germany

After the crash of its shares, the German financial watchdog BaFin and the Ministry of Finance opened an investigation into allegations of reporting and accounting misconduct. Although no charges were brought against the bank, four of the five executives of IKB stepped down between 1 August and 1 November 2007.[11]

State aid investigation by the European Union

Shortly after the IKB crash, the European Union opened an investigation into the rescue package to determine if the package contravened its state aid regulations.[12] After protracted talks with the EU, the German government submitted an official notification of the rescue measures and possible future restructuring measures in January 2008.[13] As of February 2008, no ruling has been made by the European Court on the IKB case.

Goldman Sachs SEC lawsuit

IKB was mentioned by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in court fillings when it sued Goldman Sachs and one of Goldman's Collateralized debt obligation (CDO) traders on April 16, 2010.[14] The SEC alleges that IKB was on the wrong side of the CDO instruments Goldman was creating and that Goldman defrauded both IKB and ABN-Amro in failing to disclose that the CDOs that IKB was purchasing were not assembled by a third party, but instead through the guidance of a hedge fund that was counterparty in the CDS transaction. This hedge fund, Paulson & Co., stood to earn great benefit in the event of default.[15] The suit by the SEC alleges that IKB lost $150 million which Paulson gained.[16]

References

  1. ^ a b c "IKB Deutsche Industriebank: Halbjahreszahlen für das Geschäftsjahr 2013/14" (PDF). IKB Deutsche Industriebank. Retrieved 2013-12-10.
  2. ^ "The Bank: History". IKB Deutsche Industriebank. Retrieved 2008-08-21. [dead link]
  3. ^ Halstrick, Philipp; O'Donnell, John (27 September 2007). "German public banks eye stake in IKB". Reuters. Retrieved 2008-08-21.
  4. ^ "Lone Star to Get 90.8% of Stricken Bank IKB". Reuters. CNBC. 21 August 2008. Retrieved 2008-08-21. [dead link]
  5. ^ Clark, Nicola (27 August 2007). "Mortgage Crisis Forces Sale of German Bank". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-08-21.
  6. ^ Landler, Mark; Werdigier, Julia (2 October 2007). "Some Banks in Europe Suffer, Too". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-08-21.
  7. ^ MacDonald, Alistair; Mollenkamp, Carrick (19 October 2007). "European SIVs Struggle To Avert Fire Sale of Assets". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2008-08-21.
  8. ^ Reuters.com
  9. ^ "Troubled IKB bank to get 1.5-billion-euro rescue package: minister". Agence France Presse. Google News. 13 February 2008. Retrieved 2008-08-21.
  10. ^ "Hamburger Hafen Replaces AWD in MDAX". Deutsche Börse. 5 March 2008. Retrieved 2008-08-21.
  11. ^ "PricewaterhouseCoopers-Bericht liegt vor – IKB treibt Neuausrichtung voran" (in German). IKB Deutsche Industriebank. 16 October 2007. Retrieved 2008-08-21.
  12. ^ Evans-Pritchard, Ambrose (7 August 2007). "US housing crisis deepens as American Home Mortgage and other lenders face defaults". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2008-08-21.
  13. ^ "EU says received IKB aid notification; awaiting SachsenLB and WestLB measures". AFX News. Forbes. 21 January 2008. Retrieved 2008-08-21.
  14. ^ http://network.nationalpost.com/NP/blogs/fpposted/archive/2010/04/16/abacus-2007-ac1-built-to-fail.aspx Retrieved April 17, 2010.
  15. ^ "SEC Goldman Suit Court Fillings". 16 April 2010.
  16. ^ http://www.sec.gov/litigation/complaints/2010/comp21489.pdf, Retrieved April 17, 2010.
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