Commerzbank celebrates 50 years in New York

First branch of a German Bank to open in the United States
Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Klaus-Peter Mueller: “Our New York branch exemplifies Commerzbank’s international business model and illustrates the strong historic ties of the economies of the United States and Germany. We have always understood that our role is to facilitate this important transatlantic economic and financial relationship.”
Sustainable growth through a client centric business model

Commerzbank will celebrate the 50th anniversary of its operations in the United States on Wednesday, 11 October 2017. From humble beginnings as a one person representative office in 1967, Commerzbank New York evolved to become the very first branch of a German bank to operate in the U.S. in 1971. Though primarily established as a lending institution, the mission and vision for the branch was to build and maintain relationships between Germany and the U.S. Today, Commerzbank New York continues that mission, offering a complete range of corporate and capital markets products and services, advisory and brokering partnerships.

“As experts in cross-border transactions, particularly in corporate finance, FX management and trade finance, we are able to facilitate business for our clients worldwide. We support both U.S. Corporates who are interested in the European markets, first and foremost our home market Germany, and also German companies looking to expand into the U.S. We aim to serve these clients at both ends,” said Roland Boehm, Divisional Board Member, Corporates International.

One of the pioneers of the New York branch was Klaus-Peter Mueller, who is now the Chairman of the Supervisory Board. He commented: “The 50th anniversary of our New York branch exemplifies Commerzbank’s international business model and illustrates the strong historic ties of the economies of the United States and Germany. We have always understood that our role is to facilitate this important transatlantic economic and financial relationship.” Klaus-Peter Mueller held the position of Joint General Manager of the New York branch from 1982 to 1986, and was also Assistant Representative of the former New York Representative Office from 1968 to 1971.

The Bank has gained a reputation as a strong leader in the U.S. financial community as host of the award winning German Investment Seminar (GIS), the largest investment conference for German corporates in the U.S. Held over the course of three days, German companies meet with North American equity investors, providing insights on their strategies and current business activities. The GIS provides a unique platform for leading German corporates to come together with prominent U.S. asset managers, enabling them to enhance their shareholder dialogue.

In one of the world´s largest financial centres, Commerzbank New York provides clients with direct access to the global markets. In addition to supporting medium-sized and large U.S. Corporates and U.S. subsidiaries of German clients, the Bank also offers wholesale banking for institutional clients and banks. Our Corporate Clients business includes Corporate Finance and Advisory, DCM Loans and Bonds, Corporate Equity and Distribution, as well as Trade Finance and Cash Management. Corporate clients benefit from extensive sector expertise and a deep penetration of key industry sectors: Automotive & Transport, Industrials, Consumer & Retail, Healthcare & Chemicals, Infrastructure & Energy and Telecom/Media/Technology - and it is this knowledge which sets Commerzbank apart from the competition. For risk management, Commerzbank New York also has a fully functional broker-dealer platform (Commerz Markets LLC).

Operating across the United States and Canada, the Commerzbank New York branch now employs over 350 professionals at its Liberty Street offices in downtown Manhattan. Beyond their typical job responsibilities, for these employees Corporate and Social Responsibility is an important facet of the Commerzbank New York identity. Driven by staff volunteers, their main focus at the moment is supporting local children in crisis, whether through disease, poverty or neglect. Chosen charities for 2017 include the New York Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Children (founded in 1875 and the oldest child protection agency in the world) and G.O.A.L.S. (Girls Organization of Athletics, Leaders in Sports).

From its very first commercial trade in 1968, to its most recent multi-billion dollar investment grade corporate bond underwriting, at Commerzbank New York the list of strategic key accounts is steadily rising. John Geremia, Regional Board Member and General Manager of the Commerzbank branch in New York said: “With our client-centric business model, I believe we are on a solid growth trajectory. This is supported strongly by Commerzbank’s digitalisation initiatives which will help to make customer advisory more efficient.” Geremia adds, “Commerzbank New York is emerging as a model for sustainable growth in a compliant and efficient manner.”

About Commerzbank

Commerzbank is a leading international commercial bank with branches and offices in almost 50 countries. In the two business segments Private and Small Business Customers, as well as Corporate Clients, the Bank offers a comprehensive portfolio of financial services which is precisely aligned to the clients’ needs. Commerzbank finances approximately 30% of Germany’s foreign trade and is leading in financing for corporate clients in Germany. Due to its in-depth sector know-how in the German economy, the Bank is a leading provider of capital market products. Its subsidiaries Comdirect in Germany and mBank in Poland are two of the world’s most innovative online banks. With approximately 1,000 branches, Commerzbank has one of the densest branch networks among German private banks. In total, Commerzbank serves more than 18 million private and small business customers, as well as more than 60,000 corporate clients, multinationals, financial service providers, and institutional clients. The Bank, which was founded in 1870, is represented at all the world’s major stock exchanges. In 2016, it generated gross revenues of €9.4 billion with approximately 49,900 employees.