Bafin fines Deutsche Bank 8 million euros over Postbank IT migration problems

Fine for complaint handling and depot transfers

The Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (Bafin) has imposed a fine of 8 million euros on Deutsche Bank, Germany's largest bank, with the announcement made on Thursday, 12 November 2026. In its statement, Bafin said the bank had failed to set up adequate organisational measures for the higher volume of complaints triggered by the 2023 customer data migration:

“the bank had made no adequate organisational arrangements to promptly handle the higher volume of customer complaints arising from the migration of customer data”

Bafin also found that the bank had not carried out depot transfer orders without delay. Of the total, 5.5 million euros is for slow handling of customer complaints, and 2.5 million euros is for the late execution of depot transfers.

Slow complaint handling5.5

Delayed depot transfers2.5

Slow complaint handling

5.5 million euros

Delayed depot transfers

2.5 million euros

Data from the article text

Migration of Postbank customers

Starting at Easter 2022, Deutsche Bank moved data from 12 million former Postbank customers and seven million Deutsche Bank customers in Germany onto a shared platform, which it called 'Projekt Unity', in four waves. The second wave, around New Year 2022/2023, caused the most anger because it affected, among other things, securities depots. Some customers temporarily could not access their accounts, and complaints piled up in the period that followed. Bafin had earlier criticised 'considerable impairments' in the handling of Postbank customer business and had a special commissioner monitor whether the bank brought the problems under control.

Bank's response

Asked about the decision, a Deutsche Bank spokesperson said the bank had worked through the problems from the IT migration, which date back several years. The spokesperson said processes had been continuously improved since then, and the bank's statement accepted the regulator's ruling.

“Deutsche Bank accepts the decision of Bafin.”

The penalty follows the regulator's earlier monitoring of the bank's handling of the migration, and the complaint problems date back to 2023.