A message from Christian Sewing on the Q2 2026 results

Dear Colleagues,

The past few months have been intense, and left me with many powerful impressions. In discussions in Asia and the US, at our important client conferences and at our Annual General Meeting, I was reminded time and again that many individuals and organisations are looking for direction in a world that has become increasingly uncertain.

Technological change, geopolitical tensions and economic uncertainty are profoundly changing the landscape. In this environment, our clients expect stability and a trusted partner to serve their long-term financial needs. That is exactly who we are as the Global Hausbank – and that is why our role is particularly relevant today.

Operational strength, financial discipline and lasting success make our goal credible – and in the second quarter, we demonstrated all three. We continued to grow profitably and further improved our results. Revenues grew by 9 percent year-on-year to 8.5 billion euros, while maintaining strict cost discipline. Net profit rose by 10 percent to 1.9 billion euros, marking another record quarter for our bank. This brings our post-tax profit for the first six months to 4.1 billion euros – a record high as well.

Our key performance indicators also improved; post-tax return on tangible equity (RoTE) was 11.0 percent in the second quarter and our cost/income ratio was 63.0 percent, both substantially better than in the same quarter of 2025. Our capital position remains very strong, with a Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio of 13.9 percent. This strength enabled us to secure authorization from the European Central Bank for an additional share buyback of 500 million euros.

Our progress is broad-based. In the second quarter, all four businesses once again delivered strong results and increased revenues. In the Private Bank, growth was driven by both Wealth Management and Personal Banking, supported by net inflows of 9 billion euros. Our Asset Management business attracted record net inflows of 25 billion euros. In the Corporate Bank, we saw momentum in client activity with higher loan and deposit volumes as well as initial signs of business activity picking up in Germany. Our Investment Bank stood out this quarter, with revenues rising to the highest level since the realignment of the business in 2019, driven by a record second quarter in Fixed Income & Currencies and significant growth in Investment Banking & Capital Markets, where revenues grew by 36 percent.

Encouragingly, a significant part of revenue growth comes from the less capital-intensive businesses that we want to expand. This shows that we are setting the right priorities and that our strategy is working.

This also gives us the momentum for the next phase. We want to continue developing our bank with clarity, speed and resolve. This means operating more efficiently, investing in our strengths, making more consistent use of new technologies like AI and supporting our clients’ transformation through integrated solutions that bring together the full capabilities of our bank. This is how we play an active role in shaping transformation.

We start from a position of strength. Together, we have built a bank that combines profitability, capital strength and growth – underpinned by a business model that brings together the qualities that set us apart: international reach and local presence, financing expertise, as well as deep market and risk management expertise.

The key now is to connect these strengths consistently across businesses, regions and functions. Clients increasingly need solutions that combine multiple products, services and areas of know-how. That is why collaboration is not an extra – it is at the heart of how we work. Ultimately, it is about the "we." Or, as I said in May: "There's no I in Global Hausbank. Only us."

In this spirit, I look forward to continuing this journey with you. We know where we want to go, and we are making good progress. On behalf of all of us on the Group Management Committee, thank you for everything you do every day to support our clients and our bank.

I hope many of you will join Raja and me later today at the Quarterly Check-in, where we will answer your questions as usual. Soon after that, I will also be taking some time off. For those of you planning a break over the summer, have a restful holiday. And to all of you, I wish you an enjoyable summer.

With deep dedication.
Christian