Deutsche Postbank: A German Banking Institution

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Cityscape of Frankfurt Main with Skyscrapers of the Financial District
Credit: pexels.com, Cityscape of Frankfurt Main with Skyscrapers of the Financial District

Deutsche Postbank is a German banking institution that has a rich history dating back to 1990. It was founded as a subsidiary of Deutsche Post.

The bank was established to provide financial services to the postal service's employees and customers. Its primary goal was to offer a wide range of banking products and services.

Deutsche Postbank has undergone significant changes over the years, including a major restructuring in 2008. This restructuring led to the bank's acquisition by Deutsche Bank, one of Germany's largest banks.

Today, Deutsche Postbank operates as a subsidiary of Deutsche Bank, offering a variety of banking services to its customers.

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History

The Postscheckdienst was introduced in 1909 by the German Empire to link postal and banking services in German states.

In 1990, the German Postal Service was divided into three companies, and Deutsche Post Postbank of the former East Germany was merged with Postbank.

Günter Schneider was the chairman of Postbank's board from 1990 to 1997, and the first board consisted of him, Rudolf Bauer, and Bernhard Zurhorst.

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Credit: youtube.com, POSTBANK TV Commercial

Postbank became an independent, joint stock company on 1 January 1995, following the new postal reform legislation of 1994.

By 2003, Postbank had 11.5 million customers, more than any other bank in Germany.

Postbank purchased BHF (USA) Holdings Inc. in 2001, and acquired DSL Bank by the sale of the government's shares in 1999.

Deutsche Post became the owner of Postbank in 1999, and Postbank took over the transaction banking of Deutsche Bank and Dresdner Bank in 2004.

The IPO of Postbank on 23 June 2004 was the largest stock market launch in Germany for the past 2 years, with Deutsche Post retaining a controlling stake of 50% plus one share.

In 2005, Postbank announced its intention to acquire a 76.4 percent stake of the home financing specialist, Beamten-Heimstättenwerk (BHW).

By 2006, Postbank's workforce had grown to over 25,000 employees after the acquisition of BHW Holding and 850 branches from Deutsche Post.

In 2010, Deutsche Bank gained a majority stake in Postbank, and exercised its option to acquire the remainder of Deutsche Post's holding in 2012.

Since May 2018, Postbank has been merged with the DB Privat- und Firmenkundenbank as a subsidiary of Deutsche Bank.

Curious to learn more? Check out: Employment Relations Act 2004

Products and Services

Person Deposits Money on an ATM
Credit: pexels.com, Person Deposits Money on an ATM

The Postbank offers a wide range of products and services to its customers. These include Girokonten, Kreditkarten, Sparkonten, Wertpapierdepots, Kredite, and Vermittlung von Versicherungen.

The bank specializes in serving private customers, with over 12.5 million of them being Privatkunden. They can choose from various products such as Konten, Geschäftskonten, Kredit & Finanzierung, Sparen, Geldanlage und Wertpapiere, Immobilien, Baufinanzierung, and Versicherungen.

The Postbank's products have been thoroughly tested by financial experts to provide valuable insights to its customers. Some of the tested products include Baufinanzierung, Girokonto Giro plus, Girokonto Postbank Giro extra plus, Postbank Kredit, Postbank Autokredit, Postbank Privatkredit, and Postbank Banking-App 'Finanzassistent'.

The Postbank offers several banking apps for online banking, including the Postbank App, which allows customers to manage their accounts on their smartphones. These apps also support the TÜV-geprüfte TAN-Verfahren BestSign and enable contactless payments on certain smartphones.

Some of the key products and services offered by the Postbank include:

  • Konten (Girokonten und Kreditkarten)
  • Geschäftskonten
  • Kredit & Finanzierung
  • Sparen, Geldanlage und Wertpapiere
  • Immobilien
  • Baufinanzierung
  • Versicherungen (Unfall-, Lebens- und Rentenversicherung)

Financial Information

Image of Poczta Polska post office building in Ząbkowice Sląskie, Poland on a snowy day.
Credit: pexels.com, Image of Poczta Polska post office building in Ząbkowice Sląskie, Poland on a snowy day.

As of 2016, the Deutsche Postbank AG had a balance sheet total of 147 billion euros, making it the 11th largest bank in Germany.

The bank's employee numbers fluctuated over the years, with a peak of 22,343 employees in 2012.

Here's a breakdown of the bank's balance sheet total and employee numbers from 2003 to 2017:

Keine Bargeldabhebung Mehr

The Postbank is making some changes to its services. They're no longer allowing cash withdrawals at Post-Partner shops, affecting around 1,800 stores. This is part of their cost-cutting measures.

You can still use the Postbank's Onlinebanking App to manage your transactions. The BestSign-App within the Onlinebanking allows you to approve payments initiated on your computer.

Kennzahlen

The Postbank's financial situation was quite impressive, with a balance sheet of 147 billion euros in 2016, making it the eleventh-largest bank in Germany.

Let's take a look at the bank's growth over the years. The Postbank's balance sheet increased from 132.61 billion euros in 2003 to 145.345 billion euros in 2017. That's a significant growth of over 9 billion euros in just 14 years.

Here's a breakdown of the Postbank's balance sheet over the years:

The Postbank's workforce also fluctuated over the years, with a peak of 22,343 employees in 2012.

Business Identifier Code and Bank Codes

Credit: youtube.com, What are BIC and SWIFT codes? - Statrys

The Business Identifier Code (BIC) is a crucial piece of information for identifying banks and financial institutions. PBNK DE FF is the exclusive BIC used by the Postbank.

The Postbank is divided into 14 branches, with the Deutsche Bundesbank reserving the digits 100 for the Postbank in the Bankleitzahl. The last two digits of the Bankleitzahl are formed from the first two digits of the old four-digit postal code of the respective location.

The Postbank has undergone changes, with only two main branches remaining since 2012: one in Hamburg for Hamburg Giro and Spar, and another in Munich for Munich Giro and Spar. Other locations include Dortmund, Essen, Frankfurt, Hannover, Köln, Ludwigshafen, Saarbrücken, Berlin, Karlsruhe, Leipzig, Nürnberg, and Stuttgart.

Here's a breakdown of the Postbank's branches:

The last three digits of a bank account number identify the branch where the account was opened.

Gebühreneinführung 2016

In 2016, the Postbank introduced new fees for its accounts, despite contractual agreements to the contrary.

Credit: youtube.com, Jahresbericht 2016 Exportkreditgarantien

The Postbank informed customers through a letter dated August 19, 2016, that it would introduce new general account management fees starting November 1, 2016, which would apply to all accounts, including those with special features.

These new fees would be charged regardless of the source of the money, which contradicted the terms of the contract.

The Verbraucherzentrale Hamburg intervened and successfully sued the Postbank for breaching its contract.

The Postbank had promised customers that their accounts would be free from fees "forever" and "durable and unconditional" when they signed the contract, but it failed to deliver on this promise.

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Aktionäre Kritisieren

Aktionäre der Deutschen Bank haben die Führungspitze des Konzerns lautstarke Kritik angesichts der IT-Probleme bei der Postbank geäußert.

Die Schließung von Filialen bei der Postbank wurde von den Verbraucherzentralen als "blanker Hohn" für die Kunden kritisiert, angesichts anhaltender IT-Probleme.

Die Postbank wurde bereits 2010 zu einer Strafe von 120.000 Euro verurteilt, weil sie freiberuflichen Mitarbeitern Zugriff auf Kundenkonten gegeben hatte.

Acquisitions and Mergers

Credit: youtube.com, Deutsche Bank CFO on Earnings, Saudi Arabia, Mergers

In 1999, Deutsche Post AG acquired Postbank from the Federal Republic of Germany.

Deutsche Post AG acquired the DSL Bank in 2000, and the following year, Postbank founded PB Factoring, entering the factoring business.

The process of paying out postal savings balances abroad was cumbersome, involving bilingual forms and instructions that had to be distributed to foreign post offices, but this was simplified with the introduction of the Sparcard.

From January 1, 2004, Postbank took over the processing of payments for Deutsche Bank and Dresdner Bank, outsourcing it to the Betriebs-Center für Banken.

In 2008, Deutsche Bank announced its intention to acquire Postbank, beating out Spanish bank Santander with a bid of over 8 billion euros.

The takeover plan was adjusted in 2009 due to the financial crisis, with Deutsche Bank initially acquiring 22.9% of Postbank's shares.

By the end of 2009, Deutsche Bank had acquired 29.88% of Postbank's shares, and in 2010, it acquired the majority of the shares.

Worth a look: Factoring Finance

Credit: youtube.com, Analysis: Can a merger save Germany's Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank? | DW Business

By February 2012, Deutsche Bank had acquired 93.7% of Postbank's shares, and in March 2012, it announced plans to merge Postbank with its parent company.

In 2015, Deutsche Bank began considering the possibility of separating Postbank and listing it on the stock exchange, but this plan was later dropped in favor of merging Postbank with Deutsche Bank's private and corporate banking division.

Public Relations and Sponsoring

The Deutsche Postbank has a notable history of sponsoring sports teams.

In the past, the Postbank sponsored the Frankfurt Lions, an Eishockeyverein, for two seasons.

This experience likely taught the Postbank the value of building relationships with sports teams and their fans.

The Postbank also partnered with Borussia Mönchengladbach, a Fußball-Bundesligist, as their Trikotsponsor, starting on July 1, 2009.

This sponsorship was a significant engagement for the Postbank, lasting over a decade until the 2019/20 season.

Geldautomaten – Kostenlos Bargeld

As a Postbank customer, you're in luck because you can access cash at any time. You can withdraw cash for free at over 3,500 Postbank ATMs in Germany.

Credit: youtube.com, Im Ausland Geld abheben mit der DKB Kreditkarte | Weltweit kostenlos Bargeld abheben

You can also use the ATMs of other banks, including those of the Cash Group, which has around 7,000 ATMs. Just make sure to look for the Cash Group logo on the machine to avoid any fees.

To find a convenient ATM, you can use the Postbank's online branch finder. This way, you can locate the nearest ATM with ease.

Here are some options for withdrawing cash with Postbank:

  • at all Postbank ATMs
  • at all participating Shell gas stations - even if you're not filling up
  • at selected Cardpoint ATMs marked with the Postbank logo
  • at the ATMs of Cash Group banks, including Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank, and UniCredit Bank
  • in Postbank branches and partner branches of Deutsche Post
  • at many retailers with a minimum purchase value

Sponsoring

Sponsoring plays a significant role in building brand awareness and reputation. The Postbank, for instance, sponsored the Frankfurt Lions Eishockeyverein in the 2001/02 and 2002/03 seasons.

Sponsoring can be a long-term commitment, as evidenced by the Postbank's partnership with Borussia Mönchengladbach, which lasted from 2009 to 2020. The Deutsche Bank, through its Postbank brand, was the team's Trikotsponsor during that time.

A successful sponsorship engagement requires renewal and flexibility, as seen with the Postbank's multiple contract extensions with Borussia Mönchengladbach. The sponsorship ended with the 2019/20 season.

Haben Sie Probleme?

Credit: youtube.com, Chapter 13 - Public Relations and Sponsorship Program - Part A (Recorded Lecture for MARK 415)

If you're having problems with the Postbank-Login, don't worry, it's not the end of the world.

You can get back to your online banking by resetting your password if you've forgotten it.

The Postbank-Login is the key to accessing all your accounts or deposits at the Postbank, and you can regain access if you've lost your Postbank-ID.

If you're having trouble logging in, you can get help from a guide that explains how to deal with errors and problems during the Postbank-Login process.

You can reset your password and get a new Postbank-ID if you've forgotten yours, and there's a guide that can walk you through the process.

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Stock Market and Listings

The Deutsche Postbank has a notable history on the stock market. Its shares were listed in the DAX from September 2006 to March 2009.

The bank's stock was a part of the DAX for nearly three years. It was then moved to the MDAX, where it remained until December 2010.

In 2008, Deutsche Postbank conducted a capital increase, issuing 54.8 million new shares. This move generated a significant revenue of around one billion euros.

The new shares were largely acquired by Deutsche Post AG, which increased its stake in Postbank AG to approximately 62.3%.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Ist die Postbank jetzt die Deutsche Bank?

No, die Postbank ist nicht die Deutsche Bank, sondern eine Tochtergesellschaft der Deutschen Bank. Sie wurde 2015 vollständig von der Deutschen Bank übernommen.

Wie lange wird es die Postbank noch geben?

Die Postbank wird bis Ende 2025 bestehen, danach werden die Finanzdienstleistungen in Post-Partnerfilialen eingestellt.

Wem gehört die deutsche Postbank?

Die deutsche Postbank gehört der Deutschen Bank AG. Die Deutsche Bank übernahm die Postbank im mehrstufigen Verkaufsprozess von 2008 bis 2012.

Tasha Kautzer

Senior Writer

Tasha Kautzer is a versatile and accomplished writer with a diverse portfolio of articles. With a keen eye for detail and a passion for storytelling, she has successfully covered a wide range of topics, from the lives of notable individuals to the achievements of esteemed institutions. Her work spans the globe, delving into the realms of Norwegian billionaires, the Royal Norwegian Naval Academy, and the experiences of Norwegian emigrants to the United States.

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