English | Financial news with a German perspective

There is hardly any industry where the pace of change is as fast as in the software sector. SAP has responded to new strategic guidelines with the sale of its US subsidiary Qualtrics – and made a profit on the bottom line.

The German debt brake ensures budgetary discipline. But in the current global environment, a special fund needs to be set up to strengthen Germany's growth potential, and tackle challenges such as digitalisation and sustainability.

The discussions on Capital Markets Union are regaining momentum. As part of this process, the German Banking Industry Committee and French Banking Federation recently presented a joint position paper to their respective Finance Ministries.

Jeffrey Ubben will be the first shareholder activist to join Bayer's Supervisory Board if the vote goes as expected at the AGM on April 26. The proxy advisors have no objections to his appointment.

Not only do ETFs benefit from their transparency and low fees, but their digital distribution through platforms also drives purchases of listed index funds.

In 2023, more people worked than ever before since German reunification. According to a DIW study, this is mainly due to women – but half of them work part-time. Many would like to work more, which would also counteract the shortage of skilled workers.

The search for a successor to resigning Supervisory Board Chairman Hasso Plattner has proven to be tougher than expected for SAP. The Group wants to clear at least some financial hurdles. The position is to be remunerated significantly better in future.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly being used in portfolio management and risk allocation. Daniel Ung, State Street Global Advisors, explains the potential and limitations – and ventures a look into the future of utilising alternative data.

Union Investment still sees room for improvement in corporate governance within companies. Persistent issues on the deficiency list include accumulation of offices and lack of independence in control bodies. Mercedes-Benz tops the current governance ranking by the fund company.

Before the ProSiebenSat.1 annual general meeting on April 30th, a front is forming: Italian major shareholder Media for Europe (MFE) is pushing for an examination of the separation of the commerce and dating businesses. CFO Martin Mildner suspects that MFE is only aiming to gain control on the cheap.

According to a study by the Bundesbank, Germany's climate policy goals are not achievable under the current conditions. Does the CO2 price need to rise even further? And what impact does that have on the economy?

Despite declining profits, dividend payouts for Dax companies reach a new record this year. According to EY, the 40 Dax companies are paying out 53.8 billion euros to their shareholders.

DIW President Marcel Fratzscher believes that interest rates in the Eurozone are too high and calls for a different communication strategy from the ECB.

On May 28, the United States will shorten the settlement period for securities transactions to one day after the trade. T+1 also has far-reaching implications for European banks and asset managers.

China's rapid advance in the electric vehicle market relies on microchips from Western semiconductor manufacturers. In the competition for tomorrow's global marketshare, this is an advantage that the EU can utilise.

During the capital markets day on April 24th, Volkswagen is set to unveil its plans for the Chinese automotive market. CEO Oliver Blume anticipates a challenging period for his company in the fiercely competitive electric vehicle segment. Nonetheless, he regards the competition with Chinese manufacturers in Europe as a spirited contest.

Implementing a European Deposit Insurance Scheme remains far off, in spite of the recent vote in the EU Parliament ECON Committee. But the symbolic nature of the vote is still significant for future progress on some form of EDIS.

The new IFRS 18 standard will require adjustments to consolidated financial statements. Verena Glutting, accounting expert at PwC, warns that the necessary changes in processes and IT systems should not be underestimated.

OQ Chemicals is grappling with a debt pile of over a billion euros. Following the withdrawal of an expected offer of an equity injection from its Omani parent company, hopes now rest on a white knight appearing.

With the renaming of the Passive Safety Systems division to ZF Lifetec, ZF is setting a course towards a potential sale, partial sale, or IPO. But CFO Michael Frick says there is no time pressure, and sets out some basic requirements for a deal.

The IMF is warning of a subsidy war in the global chip industry. This could be particularly bad for Germany, as its two prestige projects with Intel and TSMC illustrate.

The pressure on financial institutions' compliance departments has been growing since the start of the war in Ukraine. Financial crime expert Rory Doyle from Fenergo sees growing risks associated with sanctions violations, as well as an increase in terrorist financing.

While Boeing is in a deep crisis, Airbus is on a good run. Thomas Toepfer, the CFO of the European aerospace company, points to the vote of confidence from investors who have sent the stock price steadily higher.

In Frankfurt, it is not big investors who finance the club, but a whole series of minority shareholders. The club has succeeded in mobilizing money without diluting the majority shareholding.