Press releases
DekaBank passes stress test under even tougher conditions
Asset manager achieves comfortable Tier 1 ratio of 8.4%
DekaBank Group has passed the Committee of European Banking Supervisors‘ (CEBS) stress test with a comfortable 8.4% Tier 1 ratio as at the end of 2011 (see attachment for summary from CEBS). As with previous values, this high result still lies far above the stress test threshold of 6% set by the authorities as well as the regulatory minimum of 4%, despite the current further tightening of the assessment criteria. For the central asset manager of the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe, this exceptional result represents confirmation of the stability of its business model, even in crisis situations.
The Tier 1 ratio, including market risk positions at the end of 2009, provides the key benchmark for the stress test. Here, DekaBank achieved 9.8%. The tougher assessment criteria of the now published report were achieved by simulating severe market upheavals effecting European government bonds. For example, write offs of 4.7% were simulated for German government bonds. This effected particularly German banks, which invest heavily in domestic bonds. Furthermore, only gross exposure (disregarding securities) was considered in stress tests for government bonds, in order to achieve a better comparison between all credit institutes. Also, it was not taken into account that a great many of these positions are completely secured against market fluctuations; meaning that even under extreme stress situations, they cannot lead to loss of value or further requirement of equity.