Fee dispute BGH ruling costs banks millions

As of: 06/17/2021 3:40 p.m.

Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank have to set up provisions in the three-digit million range because of the BGH’s fee ruling. Savings banks and Volksbanks do not provide any information. The decision of the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) on possible fee reclaims from bank customers is costing the industry millions. Commerzbank expects charges “in the mid double-digit million range”, which are to be booked in the second quarter of 2021, said the CFO of the Frankfurt group, Bettina Orlopp. The ruling is also likely to have an impact on earnings. However, the bank is sticking to the forecast for 2021 of income above the previous year’s level. Thanks to the income from the IPO of the US startup Marqeta, Commerzbank will be able to offset the burden of the BGH ruling, Orlopp said. The second largest German commercial bank has held a stake in the US company since 2015. The amount of their current share is not known.

05/04/2021

According to the BGH judgment Can bank customers now claim back fees?

After the judgment of the BGH, the Comdirect put its planned increase on hold.

Deutsche Bank speaks of 300 million euros

Last week, Deutsche Bank was the first institute to issue an estimate of the possible burdens from the BGH ruling. CFO James von Moltke spoke of a total of around 300 million euros. The bank therefore wants to set aside a provision of 100 million euros in the second quarter for possible customer claims. In addition, the institute expects earnings losses of around 100 million euros each in the second and third quarters.

Von Moltke admitted that the Karlsruhe judges’ verdict caught the banking industry off guard. The burdens and yield losses are only temporary. By the fourth quarter, Deutsche Bank will have found solutions to how it can implement fee increases in accordance with the new rules.

04/27/2021

Federal Court of Justice No fictitious approval of banking terms and conditions

Previously, banks could apply their changed terms and conditions without the consent of customers. That is no longer possible.

BaFin is sounding the alarm

Savings banks and Volksbanks are holding back with statements about possible charges and provisions. A spokesman for the savings bank association DSGV wanted to respond to the request of tagesschau.de do not comment on the subject. A spokeswoman for the largest German savings bank, the Hamburger Sparkasse, said that there had been very few inquiries from customers about the BGH ruling. Therefore, she could not give any information on possible burdens.

The financial supervisory authority BaFin expects the ruling to have serious consequences for the entire industry. “That has the potential to become really expensive for banks. We would not rule out the possibility of half of the annual surplus being in the order of magnitude, which can stand in the fire,” said interim chief Raimund Röseler in mid-May.

FAQ 06/02/2021

According to the BGH fee ruling Bank customers need to take action

The BGH has overturned the banks’ practice of increasing fees – now customers can expect repayments in the billions.

Unclear number of reimbursement requests

However, it is still unclear how many customers actually request the reimbursement of previous fee increases. they have to become active themselves. Industry observers also assume that the financial institutions will examine each application individually, so there will be no flat-rate reimbursement.

At the end of April, the Karlsruhe judges decided in proceedings involving the Deutsche Bank subsidiary Postbank that banks must obtain the consent of their customers in the event of changes to general terms and conditions. The clause according to which financial institutions can assume tacit approval if customers do not object to a change within two months, disadvantageous customers inappropriately. Ref .: XI ZR 26/20