Thirty years ago, on 4 December, 1979, Deutsche Bank’s Milan branch was officially inaugurated. Deutsche Bank was the first German bank to obtain a license from the Banca d’Italia, which allowed it to open the branch.

Headquarters of Deutsche Bank Italy, Milan-Bicocca

Deutsche Bank’s historical relationship with Italy dates back to 1880, and its involvement in founding the Banca Commerciale Italiana in Milan in 1894 is of particular significance.

By May 1977, the Bank had established a Representative Office in the north Italian financial centre. At this point, Deutsche Bank was involved in the financial settlement of some 25% of German-Italian trade, and was also closely associated with Italy through its international issuing business - in that same year, the Bank lead-managed two US dollar-denominated bonds issued by the European Community for Italy, arranged a bond issue for FIAT, and participated in a number of euro-dollar loans for Italian companies. Two years later the common shares of the Italian electronic goods manufacturer Olivetti were listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the lead-management of Deutsche Bank.

In 1986, seven years after opening the branch, the acquisition of the Milan-based Banca d’America e d’Italia (BAI), which had approximately 100 branches, constituted a further milestone for Deutsche Bank’s business in Italy.

With the takeover of Banca Populare di Lecco in 1993, BAI expanded its network of branches on the Apennine Peninsula to 250, and the following year, changed its name to “Deutsche Bank”.

In May 2005, Deutsche Bank opened its new Italian head office in Milan, which houses 1,300 employees, and which was designed by well known Italian architect Gino Valle.

Today, Deutsche Bank employs around 4,000 people throughout Italy in more than 500 financial centres, Prestitempo agencies and branches.


Additional information:
Website of Deutsche Bank Italy
Deutsche Bank presence in Italy