Deutsche Bank International Private Bank (IPB), a unit of Germany-based Deutsche Bank that serves private, wealth and commercial clients, has expanded its wealth management offering to South Africa. The unit on Thursday disclosed that it has opened a new representative office for wealth management in the African country.

Deutsche Bank Targets Wealthy South Africans

The new offerings build on the multinational investment bank’s “strong local presence in investment and corporate banking,” IPB said, adding that the German lender is seeking to grow its franchise in Africa “by increasing market share amongst ultra and high-net worth individuals as well as entrepreneurs.”

South African clients will be served from Zurich, Switzerland, where the IPB Africa team is based, the company said. Paul Sayers, the Head of IPB Africa, added that clients from the country will enjoy services, such as cash and traditional portfolio management, complex structuring and alternative asset class management.

“Middle East & Africa has been contributing strongly to the growth of Deutsche Bank wealth management’s franchise,” Marco Pagliara, the Head of IPB EMEA, noted. He added: “The representative office and the South Africa team offer vast experience in wealth management, investment products, with a successful track record of servicing clients in the region.”

The rep office will be operated through Deutsche Bank Switzerland which has been authorized by the Prudential Authority of the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) to operate the office, the German lender said. A rep office is established in a foreign country to conduct marketing and other non-transaction operations.

Meanwhile, Deutsche Bank, which recently saw a double-digit drop in its share price, is exploring the possibilities of investing in tokenized securities via digital funds. Recently, the Singaporean branch of the German lender rounded off the proof-of-concept phrase of its Project Digital Assets Management Access (DAMA). The trial was run in partnership with Memento Blockchain.

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