DEUTSCHE BANK plans to strengthen and expand its business in the Philippines by tapping on the country’s skilled workforce.
Deutsche Bank Chief Executive Officer for Asia-Pacific Alexander von zur Mühlen said in an interview with BusinessWorld last month that the bank is looking to add more than 100 positions across different functions in Manila.
“In addition to the roughly 1,500 people we currently employ in the Philippines, we seek to fill 100 positions this year across a spectrum of different roles,” Mr. von zur Mühlen said.
Mr. von zur Mühlen said the bank values the depth and quality of the country’s workforce, noting that Filipinos have a high level of English proficiency.
With the bank’s 40-year history in the country, Mr. von zur Mühlen is confident they can find people with strong talent and caliber in Manila.
“We have an edge in the Philippines because beyond the direct business we do in the country with our clients, our Philippine platform and many of our colleagues here support our operations globally. This is due to the strong talent that we see in the country, and we are glad to be able to provide career opportunities with a global scope to high potential talent in the Philippines,” he said.
“The way to describe Deutsche Bank in the Philippines is that we offer a very universal bank-oriented model, meaning that we’re not a one-trick pony. We’re not focusing on a monoline type of activity,” Mr. von zur Mühlen said.
“We are offering very strong investment banking capabilities starting with liquidity provisioning in critical markets like currencies and interest rates, and extending to hedging, financing, capital markets support, as well as corporate advisory,” he added.
Mr. von zur Mühlen said on the corporate banking side, the bank offers a range of services that includes payments, cash management, and trade finance.
“With over forty years on the ground in the Philippines, we operate as a very local bank as well,” Mr. von zur Mühlen said.
The Deutsche Bank Group also includes the Deutsche Knowledge Services, which is the bank’s primary and largest support hub in the Asia-Pacific region, serving its entire back and middle office functions including finance, human resources, information technology and global operations.
Deutsche Bank obtained a full commercial banking license in 1995 after starting as a representative office in 1975 and operating as an offshore banking unit in Manila since 1977.
VOLATILITY
As for his outlook on the financial markets, Mr. von zur Mühlen said volatility is expected as global central banks begin tightening their policy settings after easing them amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“We will be subject to higher volatility in the currency markets on the back of higher interest rates, which is why it is very important for us to continue providing liquidity to financial markets, particularly in this part of the world,” he said.
Still, he said Deutsche Bank is positive that its business in the country will continue to expand as the economy recovers from the pandemic’s impact.
“The bottom line is that we have a positive outlook on the Philippines and would like to grow our businesses in all the segments that we operate in right now. We’ll continue to work closely with the clients that we’ve established a long good track record with over the years,” Mr. von zur Mühlen said. — Keisha B. Ta-asan