Deutsche Bank Pulls Back from Deals in Coal Mining Sector – by Michael Corkery and Clifford Krauss (New York Times – July 7, 2016)

http://www.nytimes.com/

Pressured by environmentalists and worried about big losses from a troubled industry, many large banks and other lenders have made a hasty retreat from coal mining in recent years.

But even in these dark times, there was one bank that many coal miners could still count on for financing and advice: Deutsche Bank. Not any longer. The German banking giant is pulling back from the embattled coal sector, another sign of the increasing risks for banks that finance industries that contribute to climate change.

Last week, six senior members of Deutsche Bank’s metals and mining investment banking team, which was responsible for overseeing deals in the coal industry, said they were decamping for Jefferies, a smaller, scrappy New York investment bank that has a knack for scooping up investment bankers who increasingly feel out of place at larger, more heavily scrutinized global banks.

A Deutsche Bank spokeswoman declined to comment on the bankers’ exodus. But industry analysts said the move was partly related to Deutsche Bank’s decision to back away from working on certain coal projects.

Deutsche Bank has no immediate plans to replace the six bankers, who helped the German bank secure the largest market share of metals and mining revenue in the Americas among banks last year. That ranking was up from sixth place in 2011, when many of them joined Deutsche from the Swiss banking rival UBS.

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