https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/19/business/dealbook/trump-deutsche-bank.html
DealBook Briefing: Inside Trump and Deutsche Bank’s Checkered History
Deutsche Bank’s headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany.CreditMauritz Antin/EPA, via Shutterstock
Deutsche Bank’s headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany.CreditCreditMauritz Antin/EPA, via Shutterstock
March 19, 2019
DealBook Briefing: Inside Trump and Deutsche Bank’s Checkered History
Deutsche Bank’s headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany.CreditMauritz Antin/EPA, via Shutterstock
Deutsche Bank’s headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany.CreditCreditMauritz Antin/EPA, via Shutterstock
March 19, 2019
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Trump and Deutsche Bank’s cozy tie-up
President Trump has long enjoyed the backing of one major lender: Deutsche Bank. David Enrich of the NYT has taken a deep look into their often turbulent relationship — which is now under investigation by prosecutors and Congress.
Deutsche Bank courted Mr. Trump when no one else would. He had already gone bankrupt, and no Wall Street lender would back him. But bankers at Deutsche like Mike Offit and Justin Kennedy (the son of Justice Anthony Kennedy) lent him millions. Mr. Trump rewarded some bankers, after some prompting, with a trip to his Mar-a-Lago resort.
It issued loans despite finding financial discrepancies. Deutsche Bank officials concluded that Mr. Trump was worth about $788 million, not his self-proclaimed $3 billion. And a senior banking executive told Mr. Enrich that he had told others that Mr. Trump had worked with people in the construction industry who were tied to organized crime.
Only when Mr. Trump sued Deutsche Bank did its investment banking arm drop him as a client. But its private wealth arm, hungry for business, eventually took him back and lent him millions more.
After the 2016 election, Deutsche Bank executives admitted to problems. They concluded that their colleagues had ignored many warning signs about Mr. Trump, including from internal “exposure reports.” Salesmen for the firm were warned not to utter Mr. Trump’s name in public.
Now the bank is in investigators’ cross hairs, and plans to hand over extensive internal documentation to Congress and federal prosecutors. Rosemary Vrablic, Mr. Trump’s main private banker — “She is the boss,” he once told the NYT — expects to be called to testify on Capitol Hill.
