Deutsche Bank posted a 58 percent drop in net profit in the first quarter, to 236 million euros (USD 267 million) compared to the same period last year.
The group posted a revenue decline of 22 percent year-on-year to 8.1 billion euros which it said "reflected a challenging environment and the impact of strategic decisions to downsize and exit certain businesses."
In its core business, revenue dropped 15 percent in its corporate and investment banking division and 23 percent in its global markets unit. It said 2016 would be the "peak year for its restructuring efforts."
Remarking on the latest earnings, co-Chief Executive John Cryan said they reflected wider challenging conditions in the first quarter.
"Financial markets were challenging during the first quarter, largely reflecting concerns about the outlook for the global economy. This uncertainty led to a decline in client activity in the capital markets, and our revenues fell from the prior year, most notably in our trading and corporate finance businesses. Our results reflect these challenging conditions as well as the impact of our strategic decisions to exit or reduce significantly selected businesses," he said in the statement.
He said the bank had made progress, modernizing its IT platforms, the operational separation of Deutsche Postbank and "the continued disposal of non-core assets and the ongoing closure or downsizing of our operations in selected countries." In addition, "we markedly improved the process through which we adopt new clients," it said.
In the fourth quarter, the bank posted a net loss of 2.1 billion euros and full-year net loss (and a record loss) of 6.8 billion euros in 2015.When that data was released in late January, the chief financial officer Marcus Schenck said he expected 2018 to the first "clean" year for the bank as the lender continued to struggle with writedowns, litigation charges and restructuring costs.
As concerns grew over the bank and the stock sold off sharply in February, Cryan rushed to reassure investors and staff on the bank's stability, saying it remained "absolutely rock solid."
However, worries over the bank's exposure to the volatile energy sector and a possible cash crunch are still investor concerns.
