Deutsche Bank Slips on $9.8 Billion Fine for Euribor Control Lapses

Deutsche Bank stock (NYSE:DB) (DE:DBKGn) traded 0.5% lower in Germany Wednesday after the lender was fined €8.66 million ($9.8 million) by the country’s financial watchdog for lacking controls in its submissions for Euro Interbank Offered Rate.

Euribor is derived from the average interest rate at which banks borrow from one another, similar to the more widely known London Interbank Offered Rate. The rates are used to price consumer loans as well as complex derivatives.

“The bank at times did not have in place effective preventive systems, controls and policies,” BaFin said.

Deutsche Bank accepted the fine and said it was implementing measures to improve its controls.

While BaFin said Deutsche Bank has a right to appeal, the company said it accepts the fine to create “legal certainty.”

Banks including UBS (NYSE:UBS) and JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) have in the past been fined for rigging the rates, the reason why they are being phased out now.

Germany’s largest lender has had a tumultuous time last few years, facing multiple legal and regulatory challenges while its management has struggled to restore profitability. The U.S. Justice Department recently told Deutsche Bank it might have violated a criminal settlement by failing to inform prosecutors about an internal complaint tied to the lender’s asset-management arm, Bloomberg said.