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Deutsche Bank Raids Expand to Danske Bank and Cumulus

  //business-finance.news-articles.net/content/202 .. ank-raids-expand-to-danske-bank-and-cumulus.html
  Published in Business and Finance on Friday, February 6th 2026 at 7:28 GMT by CNBC
      Locales: North Rhine-Westphalia, Bavaria, GERMANY

FRANKFURT, Germany - February 6th, 2026 - German police conducted extensive raids on multiple Deutsche Bank offices on Wednesday, February 4th, 2026, as part of an escalating investigation into alleged money laundering activities. The operation, confirmed by Deutsche Bank in a brief statement acknowledging full cooperation with authorities, is significantly broadening in scope, now encompassing Danske Bank and Vienna-based financial services provider, Cumulus. This latest development casts a long shadow over Deutsche Bank, a financial institution already burdened by a history of regulatory scrutiny and legal challenges.

According to a recent court filing reviewed by CNBC, the investigation centers around transactions totaling billions of euros. The sheer scale of these transactions suggests a potentially sophisticated and long-running operation. Crucially, the filing reveals that Cumulus acted as a correspondent bank for Deutsche Bank, facilitating transactions and potentially obscuring the origins of funds. This correspondent banking relationship is now a key focus of the investigation, with authorities scrutinizing whether adequate due diligence was performed to prevent illicit funds from entering the financial system.

This isn't an isolated incident for Deutsche Bank. Over the past decade, the institution has been repeatedly embroiled in compliance scandals, including investigations related to the manipulation of benchmark interest rates, the mis-selling of mortgage-backed securities, and sanctions violations. Each incident has chipped away at the bank's reputation and resulted in hefty fines. This recurring pattern raises serious questions about the effectiveness of Deutsche Bank's internal controls and its commitment to preventing financial crime.

The inclusion of Danske Bank in the probe significantly widens the net. Danske Bank was previously at the center of a massive money laundering scandal linked to its Estonian branch, involving approximately 200 billion euros in suspicious transactions between 2007 and 2015. The re-emergence of Danske Bank in a new investigation suggests potential links between the earlier scandal and the current allegations against Deutsche Bank and Cumulus. Investigators are likely exploring whether funds that flowed through Danske Bank's Estonian branch were subsequently laundered through Deutsche Bank's network, potentially utilizing Cumulus as an intermediary.

Cumulus, as a financial services provider specializing in cross-border payments, is now under intense pressure. Correspondent banking relationships are inherently risky, particularly when dealing with institutions operating in jurisdictions with lax anti-money laundering regulations. The suspicion is that Cumulus may have knowingly facilitated the movement of illicit funds, or at the very least, failed to implement sufficient safeguards to detect and prevent such activity. Sources within the investigative team suggest that Cumulus may have been specifically targeted for its role in providing access to financial networks that would otherwise be unavailable to those seeking to launder money.

The implications of this investigation extend beyond Deutsche Bank's immediate financial health. A systemic failure to prevent money laundering can erode public trust in the financial system as a whole, facilitate criminal activity, and even pose a threat to national security. Regulators are likely to demand a comprehensive overhaul of Deutsche Bank's compliance procedures, potentially leading to further fines and restrictions on its operations.

Experts predict a protracted and complex investigation. Tracing the flow of billions of euros across multiple jurisdictions will require extensive international cooperation and the careful analysis of vast amounts of financial data. The investigation will likely involve forensic accounting, the examination of shell companies, and the interrogation of key individuals involved in the transactions. The outcome could have significant repercussions for all three institutions involved, as well as for the broader European financial landscape. Furthermore, the incident is prompting renewed calls for stricter regulations on correspondent banking and increased transparency in cross-border financial transactions.

The European Banking Authority (EBA) has announced it will be closely monitoring the investigation and is prepared to intervene if necessary to ensure the stability of the financial system. The EBA has already indicated its intention to conduct a thorough review of Deutsche Bank's anti-money laundering controls, independent of the criminal investigation. The results of that review are expected to be published in the coming months and could lead to further regulatory action.