reliminaryresultsforthenancialyear
Deutsche Bank
Annual Report 2011 on Form 20-F
class="bi x0 y0 w1 h1" i
As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 20, 2012
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
Form 20-F
REGISTRATION STATEMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(b) OR (g) OF THE SECURITIES
EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
or
ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE
ACT OF 1934 FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2011
or
TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES
EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
or
SHELL COMPANY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES
EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
Date of event requiring this shell company report……………………………….
Commission file number 1-15242
Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft
(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)
Deutsche Bank Corporation
(Translation of Registrant’s name into English)
Federal Republic of Germany
(Jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)


Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, or non-accelerated filer.
See definition of “accelerated filer and large accelerated filer” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act (Check one):
Large accelerated filer Accelerated filer Non-accelerated filer
Indicate by check mark which basis of accounting the registrant has used to prepare the financial statements included in this filing:
U.S. GAAP International Financial Reporting Standards Other
as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board
If “Other” has been checked in response to the previous question, indicate by check mark which financial statement item the registrant
has elected to follow
Item 17 Item 18
If this is an annual report, indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange
Act).
Yes No x x
x
x
x
x
x

8.05 % Company Preferred Securities of Deutsche Bank Contingent Capital LLC V*
Subordinated Guarantees of Deutsche Bank AG in connection with Capital Securities*
DB Agriculture Short Exchange Traded Notes due April 1, 2038 NYSE Arca
DB Agriculture Long Exchange Traded Notes due April 1, 2038 NYSE Arca
DB Agriculture Double Short Exchange Traded Notes due April 1, 2038 NYSE Arca
DB Agriculture Double Long Exchange Traded Notes due April 1, 2038 NYSE Arca
DB Commodity Short Exchange Traded Notes due April 1, 2038 NYSE Arca
DB Commodity Long Exchange Traded Notes due April 1, 2038 NYSE Arca
DB Commodity Double Long Exchange Traded Notes due April 1, 2038 NYSE Arca
DB Commodity Double Short Exchange Traded Notes due April 1, 2038 NYSE Arca
DB Gold Double Long Exchange Traded notes due February 15, 2038 NYSE Arca
DB Gold Double Short Exchange Traded notes due February 15, 2038 NYSE Arca
DB Gold Short Exchange Traded notes due February 15, 2038 NYSE Arca
ELEMENTS “Dogs of the Dow” Linked to the Dow Jones High Yield Select 10 Total Return Index due November 14, 2022 NYSE Arca
ELEMENTS Linked to the Morningstar® Wide Moat Focus(SM) Total Return Index due October 24, 2022 NYSE Arca
PowerShares DB Base Metals Short Exchange Traded Notes due June 1, 2038 NYSE Arca
PowerShares DB Base Metals Long Exchange Traded Notes due June 1, 2038 NYSE Arca
PowerShares DB Base Metals Double Short Exchange Traded Notes due June 1, 2038 NYSE Arca
PowerShares DB Base Metals Double Long Exchange Traded Notes due June 1, 2038 NYSE Arca
PowerShares DB Crude Oil Short Exchange Traded Notes due June 1, 2038 NYSE Arca
PowerShares DB Crude Oil Long Exchange Traded Notes due June 1, 2038 NYSE Arca
PowerShares DB Crude Oil Double Short Exchange Traded Notes due June 1, 2038 NYSE Arca
PowerShares DB German Bund Futures Exchange Traded Notes due March 31, 2021 NYSE Arca
PowerShares DB Italian Treasury Bond Futures Exchange Traded Notes due March 31, 2021 NYSE Arca
PowerShares DB Japanese Govt Bond Futures Exchange Traded Notes due March 31, 2021 NYSE Arca
PowerShares DB Inverse Japanese Govt Bond Futures Exchange Traded Notes due November 30, 2021 NYSE Arca
PowerShares DB US Deflation Exchange Traded Notes due November 30, 2021 NYSE Arca
PowerShares DB US Inflation Exchange Traded Notes due November 30, 2021 NYSE Arca
PowerShares DB 3x German Bund Futures Exchange Traded Notes due March 31, 2021 NYSE Arca
PowerShares DB 3x Italian Treasury Bond Futures Exchange Traded Notes due March 31, 2021 NYSE Arca

History and Development of the Company – 22
Business Overview – 24
Our Group Divisions – 28
Corporate & Investment Bank Group Division – 28
Corporate Banking & Securities Corporate Division – 29
Global Transaction Banking Corporate Division – 30
Private Clients and Asset Management Group Division – 31
Corporate Investments Group Division – 38
Infrastructure and Regional Management – 40
The Competitive Environment – 40
Regulation and Supervision – 43
Organizational Structure – 56
Property and Equipment – 57
Information Required by Industry Guide 3 – 57
Item 4A: Unresolved Staff Comments – 57
Item 5: Operating and Financial Review and Prospects – 58
Overview – 58
Significant Accounting Policies and Critical Accounting Estimates – 58
Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements and New Accounting Pronouncements – 58
Operating Results (2011 vs. 2010) – 59
Results of Operations by Segment (2011 vs. 2010) – 69
Group Divisions – 72
Operating Results (2010 vs. 2009) – 80
Results of Operations by Segment (2010 vs. 2009) – 83
Liquidity and Capital Resources – 89
Post-Employment Benefit Plans – 89
Update on Key Credit Market Exposures – 89
Special Purpose Entities – 93
Tabular Disclosure of Contractual Obligations – 98
Research and Development, Patents and Licenses – 98

Item 9: The Offer and Listing – 142
Offer and Listing Details – 142
Plan of Distribution – 144
Selling Shareholders – 144
Dilution – 144
Expenses of the Issue – 144
Item 10: Additional Information – 145
Share Capital – 145
Memorandum and Articles of Association – 145
Material Contracts – 148
Exchange Controls – 148
Taxation – 149
Dividends and Paying Agents – 152
Statement by Experts – 152
Documents on Display – 153
Subsidiary Information Test – 153
Item 11: Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Credit, Market and Other Risk – 154
Risk Management Executive Summary – 154
Risk Management Principles – 156
Risk Strategy and Appetite – 160
Risk Inventory – 161
Risk Management Tools – 163
Credit Risk – 166
Market Risk – 200
Operational Risk – 217
Liquidity Risk at Deutsche Bank Group (excluding Postbank) – 221
Capital Management – 228
Balance Sheet Management – 231
Overall Risk Position – 232
Item 12: Description of Securities other than Equity Securities – 234

Deutsche Bank v
A
nnual Report 2011 on Form 20-F

Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft, which we also call Deutsche Bank AG, is a stock corporation organized
under the laws of the Federal Republic of Germany. Unless otherwise specified or required by the context, in
this document, references to “we”, “us”, “our”, “the Group” and “Deutsche Bank Group” are to Deutsche Bank
Aktiengesellschaft and its consolidated subsidiaries.
Due to rounding, numbers presented throughout this document may not add up precisely to the totals we pro-
vide and percentages may not precisely reflect the absolute figures.
Our registered address is Taunusanlage 12, 60325 Frankfurt am Main, Germany, and our telephone number is
+49-69-910-00.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
We make certain forward-looking statements in this document with respect to our financial condition and re-
sults of operations. In this document, forward-looking statements include, among others, statements relating to:
— the potential development and impact on us of economic and business conditions and the legal and regu-
latory environment to which we are subject;
— the implementation of our strategic initiatives and other responses thereto;
— the development of aspects of our results of operations;
— our expectations of the impact of risks that affect our business, including the risks of losses on our trading
processes and credit exposures; and
— other statements relating to our future business development and economic performance.
In addition, we may from time to time make forward-looking statements in our periodic reports to the United
States Securities and Exchange Commission on Form 6-K, annual and interim reports, invitations to Annual
General Meetings and other information sent to shareholders, offering circulars and prospectuses, press re-
leases and other written materials. Our Management Board, Supervisory Board, officers and employees may
also make oral forward-looking statements to third parties, including financial analysts.
Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts, including statements about our beliefs
and expectations. We use words such as “believe”, “anticipate”, “expect”, “intend”, “seek”, “estimate”, “project”,
“should”, “potential”, “reasonably possible”, “plan”, “aim” and similar expressions to identify forward-looking

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
This document and other documents we have published or may publish contain non-GAAP financial measures.
Non-GAAP financial measures are measures of our historical or future performance, financial position or cash
flows that contain adjustments that exclude or include amounts that are included or excluded, as the case may
be, from the most directly comparable measure calculated and presented in accordance with IFRS in our finan-
cial statements. We refer to the definitions of certain adjustments as “target definitions” because we have in the
past used and may in the future use the non-GAAP financial measures based on them to measure our financial
targets. Examples of our non-GAAP financial measures, and the most directly comparable IFRS financial
measures, are as follows:
Non-GAAP Financial Measure Most Directly Comparable IFRS Financial Measure
IBIT attributable to Deutsche Bank shareholders (target definition) Income (loss) before income taxes
A
verage active equity
A
verage shareholders’ equity
Pre-tax return on average active equity Pre-tax return on average shareholders’ equity
Pre-tax return on average active equity (target definition) Pre-tax return on average shareholders’ equity
Total assets adjusted Total assets
Total equity adjusted Total equity
Leverage ratio (target definition) (total assets adjusted to
total equity adjusted)
Leverage ratio (total assets to total equity) For descriptions of these non-GAAP financial measures and the adjustments made to the most directly com-
parable IFRS financial measures to obtain them, please refer (i) for the leverage ratio (target definition), as well
as the total assets adjusted and total equity adjusted figures used in its calculation, to “Item 11: Quantitative
and Qualitative Disclosures about Credit, Market and Other Risk – Balance Sheet Management”, and (ii) for
the other non-GAAP financial measures listed above, to pages S-16 through S-18 of the supplemental financial
information, which are incorporated by reference herein.

Item 2: Offer Statistics and Expected Timetable
Not required because this document is filed as an annual report.
Item 3: Key Information
Selected Financial Data
We have derived the data we present in the tables below from our audited consolidated financial statements
for the years presented. You should read all of the data in the tables below together with the consolidated
financial statements and notes included in “Item 18: Financial Statements” and the information we provide in
“Item 5: Operating and Financial Review and Prospects.” Except where we have indicated otherwise, we have
prepared all of the consolidated financial information in this document in accordance with International Finan-
cial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”) as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (“IASB”) and as
endorsed by the European Union (“EU”). Our group division and segment data come from our management
reporting systems and are not in all cases prepared in accordance with IFRS. For a discussion of the major
differences between our management reporting systems and our consolidated financial statements under IFRS,
see Note 05 “Business Segments and Related Information”.
PART I

Deutsche Bank Item 3: Key Information 2
A
nnual Report 2011 on Form 20-F Income Statement Data
2011
1

2,3
5.76 4.45 3.07 7.21 (6.87) 12.29
Diluted earnings per share
2,4
5.56 4.30 2.92 6.94 (6.87) 11.80
Dividends paid per share
5
0.97 0.75 0.75 0.50 4.50 4.00

1
Amounts in this column are unaudited. We have translated the amounts solely for your convenience at a rate of U.S.$ 1.2939 per €, the euro foreign exchange reference rate for U.S.
dollars published by the European Central Bank (ECB) for December 30, 2011.
2
The number of average basic and diluted shares outstanding has been adjusted for all periods before October 6, 2010 to reflect the effect of the bonus element of the subscription rights
issue in connection with the capital increase.
3
We calculate basic earnings per share for each period by dividing our net income (loss) by the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding.
4
We calculate diluted earnings per share for each period by dividing our net income (loss) by the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding after assumed conversions.
5
Dividends we declared and paid in the year.
Balance Sheet Data
2011
1
2011 2010 2009 2008 2007

in U.S.$ m. in € m. in € m. in € m. in € m. in € m.
Total assets 2,800,133 2,164,103 1,905,630 1,500,664 2,202,423 1,925,003
Loans 533,752 412,514 407,729 258,105 269,281 198,892
Deposits 778,578 601,730 533,984 344,220 395,553 457,946
Deutsche Bank Item 3: Key Information 3
A
nnual Report 2011 on Form 20-F

Certain Key Ratios and Figures
2011 2010 2009 2008 2007
Share price at period-end
1

€ 29.44 € 39.10 € 44.98 € 25.33 € 81.36
Share price high
1
€ 48.70 € 55.11 € 53.05 € 81.73 € 107.85
Share price low
1
€ 20.79 € 35.93 € 14.00 € 16.92 € 74.02
Book value per basic share outstanding
2
€ 58.11 € 52.38 € 52.65 € 47.90 € 71.39
Return on average shareholders’ equity (post-tax)
3
8.2 % 5.5 % 14.6 % (11.1) % 17.9 %
Pre-tax return on average shareholders’ equity
4
10.2 % 9.5 % 15.3 % (16.5) % 24.1 %
Pre-tax return on average active equity
5
10.3 % 9.6 % 15.1 % (17.7) % 29.0 %

2
Shareholders’ equity divided by the number of basic shares outstanding (both at period-end).
3
Net income (loss) attributable to our shareholders as a percentage of average shareholders’ equity.
4
Income (loss) before income taxes attributable to our shareholders as a percentage of average shareholders’ equity.
5
Income (loss) before income taxes attributable to our shareholders as a percentage of average active equity.
6
Total noninterest expenses as a percentage of net interest income before provision for credit losses, plus noninterest income.
7
Compensation and benefits as a percentage of total net interest income before provision for credit losses, plus noninterest income.
8
Noncompensation noninterest expenses, which is defined as total noninterest expenses less compensation and benefits, as a percentage of total net interest income before provision for
credit losses, plus noninterest income.
9
Ratios presented for 2011 are based on the amended capital requirements for trading book and securitization positions following the Capital Requirements Directive 3, also known as “Basel
2.5”, as implemented in the German Banking Act and the Solvency Regulation. Ratios presented for 2010, 2009 and 2008 are pursuant to the revised capital framework presented by the
Basel Committee in 2004 (“Basel 2”) as adopted into German law by the German Banking Act and the Solvency Regulation (“Solvabilitätsverordnung”). Ratios presented for 2007 are based
on the Basel 1 framework. The capital ratios relate the respective capital to risk weighted assets for credit, market and operational risk. Excludes transitional items pursuant to Section 64h (3)
of the German Banking Act.
10
Deutsche Postbank aligned its FTE definition to that of Deutsche Bank which reduced the Group number as of December 31, 2011 by 260 (prior periods not restated).
Dividends
The following table shows the dividend per share in euro and in U.S. dollars for the years ended December 31,
2011, 2010, 2009, 2008 and 2007. We declare our dividends at our Annual General Meeting following each year.
Our dividends are based on the non-consolidated results of Deutsche Bank AG as prepared in accordance with
German accounting principles. Because we declare our dividends in euro, the amount an investor actually
receives in any other currency depends on the exchange rate between euro and that currency at the time the
euros are converted into that currency.
Dividends
per share
1

Dividends
per share
Basic earnings
per share

Diluted earnings
per share
2011 (proposed) $ 0.97 € 0.75 17 % 17 %
2010 $ 1.00 € 0.75 24 % 26 %
2009 $ 1.08 € 0.75 10 % 11 %
2008 $ 0.70 € 0.50 N/M N/M
2007 $ 6.57 € 4.50 37 % 38 % N/M – Not meaningful
1
For your convenience, we present dividends in U.S. dollars for each year by translating the euro amounts on the last day of the year using the euro foreign
exchange reference rate published by the European Central Bank (ECB) in the case of 2011, 2010 and 2009 and using the “noon buying rate” announced by the
Federal Reserve Bank of New York in the case of 2008 and 2007. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York discontinued the publication of foreign exchange rates
on December 31, 2008.
2
We define our payout ratio as the dividends we paid per share in respect of each year as a percentage of our basic and diluted earnings per share for that year.
For 2008, the payout ratio was not calculated due to the net loss.
3

value of cash dividends we may pay on our shares in euros. Past fluctuations in foreign exchange rates may
not be predictive of future fluctuations.
Unless otherwise indicated, the following table shows the period-end, average, high and low euro foreign ex-
change reference rates for U.S. dollars as published by the ECB. In each case, the period-end rate is the rate
announced for the last business day of the period.
in U.S.$ per € Period-end Average
1
High Low
2012
March (through March 6) 1.3153 − 1.3312 1.3153
February 1.3443 − 1.3454 1.2982
January 1.3176 − 1.3176 1.2669
2011
December 1.2939 − 1.3511 1.2889
November 1.3418 − 1.3809 1.3229
October 1.4001 − 1.4160 1.3181
September 1.3503 − 1.4285 1.3430
2011 1.2939 1.4000 1.4882 1.2889
2010 1.3362 1.3207 1.4563 1.1942
2009 1.4406 1.3963 1.5120 1.2555
2008
2
1.3919 1.4695 1.6010 1.2446
2007
2
1.4603 1.3797 1.4862 1.2904

1
We calculated the average rates for each year using the average of exchange rates on the last business day of each month during the year. We did not calculate
average exchange rates within months.


Shareholders’ equity:
Common shares (no par value) 2,380
Additional paid-in capital 23,695
Retained earnings 30,119
Common shares in treasury, at cost (823)
Accumulated other comprehensive income, net of tax
Unrealized net gains (losses) on financial assets available for sale, net of applicable tax and other (617)
Unrealized net gains (losses) on derivatives hedging variability of cash flows, net of tax (226)
Unrealized net gains (losses) on assets classified as held for sale, net of tax −
Foreign currency translation, net of tax (1,166)
Unrealized net gains (losses) from equity method investments 28
Total shareholders’ equity 53,390
Noncontrolling interests 1,270
Total equity 54,660
Total capitalization 244,309
1
€ 1,653 million (1 %) of our debt was guaranteed as of December 31, 2011. This consists of debt of a subsidiary of Deutsche Postbank AG which is guaranteed by
the German government.
2
€ 8,254 million (4 %) of our debt was secured as of December 31, 2011.
Reasons for the Offer and Use of Proceeds
Not required because this document is filed as an annual report.
Risk Factors
An investment in our securities involves a number of risks. You should carefully consider the following informa-
tion about the risks we face, together with other information in this document, when you make investment deci-
sions involving our securities. If one or more of these risks were to materialize, it could have a material adverse
effect on our financial condition, results of operations, cash flows or prices of our securities.
We have been and may continue to be affected by the ongoing European sovereign debt crisis, and
we may be required to take impairments on our exposures to the sovereign debt of Greece and other

was announced, the ultimate outcome of these efforts, as well as the prospect of Greece managing its debt
levels after any such efforts, remains unclear. Depending on the outcome of such efforts, we may be required
to take further impairments on our Greek sovereign exposures. In addition, concerns over the ability of other
eurozone sovereigns to manage their debt levels could intensify and similar negotiations could take place with
respect to the sovereign debt of other affected countries, and the outcome of any negotiations regarding
changed terms (including reduced principal amounts or extended maturities) of sovereign debt may result in
additional impairments. Any negotiations are highly likely to be subject to political and economic pressures that
we cannot control, and we are unable to predict their effects on the financial markets, on the greater economy
or on us.
In addition, any restructuring of outstanding sovereign debt may result in potential losses for us and other mar-
ket participants that are not covered by payouts on hedging instruments that we have entered into to protect
against the risk of default. These instruments largely consist of credit default swaps, generally referred to as
CDSs, pursuant to which one party agrees to make a payment to another party if a credit event (such as a
default) occurs on the identified underlying debt obligation. A sovereign restructuring that avoids a credit event
through voluntary write-downs of value may not trigger the provisions in CDSs we have entered into, meaning
that our exposures in the event of a write-down could exceed the exposures we previously viewed as our net
exposure after hedging. Additionally, even if the CDS provisions are triggered, the amounts ultimately paid
under the CDSs may not correspond to the full amount of any loss we incur. Even if our hedging strategies are
appropriate in the current environment, we face the risk that our hedging counterparties have not effectively
hedged their own exposures and may be unable to provide the necessary liquidity if payments under the in-
struments they have written are triggered. This may result in systemic risk for the European banking sector as
a whole and may negatively affect our business and financial position.
Regulatory and political actions by European governments in response to the sovereign debt crisis
may not be sufficient to prevent the crisis from spreading or to prevent departure of one or more
member countries from the common currency. The departure of any one or more countries from the
euro could have unpredictable consequences on the financial system and the greater economy,
potentially leading to declines in business levels, write-downs of assets and losses across our
businesses. Our ability to protect ourselves against these risks is limited.
If European policymakers are unable to contain the sovereign debt crisis, our results of operations and finan-
cial position would likely be materially and adversely affected as banks, including us, may be required to take

ing pressure on other eurozone governments.
Should a eurozone country conclude it must exit the common currency, the resulting need to reintroduce a
national currency and restate existing contractual obligations could have unpredictable financial, legal, political
and social consequences. Given the highly interconnected nature of the financial system within the eurozone,
the high levels of exposure we have to public and private counterparties around Europe, our ability to plan for
such a contingency in a manner that would reduce our exposure to non-material levels is likely to be limited. If
the overall economic climate deteriorates as a result of one or more departures from the eurozone, nearly all of
our businesses, including our more stable flow businesses, could be adversely affected, and if we are forced to
write down additional exposures, we could incur substantial losses.
Our results are dependent on the macroeconomic environment and we have been and may continue
to be affected by the macroeconomic effects of the ongoing European sovereign debt crisis,
including renewed concerns about the risk of a return to recession in the eurozone, as well as by
lingering effects of the recent global financial crisis of 2007-2008.
As a global investment bank with a large private client franchise, our businesses are materially affected by
conditions in the global financial markets and economic conditions generally. Beginning in the second half of
2007, and particularly in September 2008, the financial services industry, including ourselves, and the global
financial markets were materially and adversely affected by significant declines in the values of nearly all
classes of financial assets. Since that time, banks, including us, have experienced nearly continuous stress on
their business models and prospects. A widespread loss of investor confidence, both in our industry and in the
broader markets, and other continuing effects of the financial crisis of 2007-2008 lingered even during the
relatively benign period before the European sovereign debt crisis once again increased pressure on the finan-
cial sector (including us).
In the wake of the global financial crisis, the world economy contracted in 2009. While the world economy grew
in 2010, and financial markets for many classes of assets returned to their pre-crisis levels, growth was fueled
by stimuli from expansive monetary and fiscal policies, investments that had been postponed from 2009 and
subsequently made, and the building up of inventory. Momentum has slowed since autumn 2010 as the effect
of these factors tailed off.

loss in 2008. In addition, while we were profitable in 2009, 2010 and 2011, write-downs and losses in 2009
materially and negatively affected our results for that year. If economic conditions in the eurozone fail to im-
prove, or continue to worsen, or economic growth stagnates elsewhere, our results of operations may be mate-
rially and adversely affected. In particular, we may in the future be unable to offset the potential negative effects
on our profitability of the ongoing financial crisis and measures taken to resolve it through performance in our
other businesses.
We require capital to support our business activities and meet regulatory requirements. Regulatory
capital and liquidity requirements are being increased significantly, surcharges for systemically
important banks like us are being imposed and definitions of capital are being tightened. In addition,
any losses resulting from current market conditions or otherwise could diminish our capital, make it
more difficult for us to raise additional capital or increase the cost to us of new capital. Any per-
ceptions in the market that we may be unable to meet our capital requirements with an adequate
buffer could have the effect of intensifying the effect of these factors on us.
In response to the recent global financial crisis and the ongoing European sovereign debt crisis, a number of
initiatives relating to the capital requirements applicable to European banks, including ourselves, have been
adopted or are in the process of being developed. These include the following:
— Basel 2.5. In the wake of the recent global financial crisis, in mid-2010 the Basel Committee on Banking
Supervision (the “Basel Committee”) finalized new rules regarding the capital requirements applicable to
trading activities. These rules, which are commonly referred to as Basel 2.5, have significantly in-
creased the capital requirements applicable to our trading book by introducing new risk measures, in-
cluding by applying the rules applicable to assets held in the banking book to securitizations held for
trading and by mandating specified capital treatment for other identified asset classes.

Deutsche Bank Item 3: Key Information 10

Additionally, the FSB and the Basel Committee have agreed to the creation of an international standard for
the resolution of SIFIs, the implementation of resolvability assessments of SIFIs and the development of
cross-border cooperation agreements to these ends.
— Operational Risk Buffers. Regulators also have discretion to impose capital deductions on financial
institutions for operational risks that are not otherwise recognized in risk-weighted assets or other sur-
charges depending on the individual situation of the bank.
— Elimination of Capital Treatment for Hybrid Capital. Under the new capital regimes, our outstanding
hybrid instruments will no longer qualify as Tier 1 capital.
— Tightening Accounting Standards. Prospective changes in accounting standards, such as those impos-
ing stricter or more extensive requirements to carry assets at fair value, could also impact our capital
needs.
We may not have sufficient capital to meet these or other regulatory requirements. This could occur both due
to these regulatory and other changes and due to any substantial losses we were to incur, which would reduce
our retained earnings, a component of Core Tier 1 capital. If we cannot improve our capital ratios to the regula-
tory minimum in any such case by raising new capital through the capital markets, through the reduction of risk
weighted assets or through other means, we could be forced to accept capital injections from the German
government or the European Union (if available). These capital injections could lead to significant dilution of
our shareholders, and regulators may impose additional operational and other limitations or obligations on our
business as conditions to public funding. In addition, any requirement to increase capital ratios could lead us to
adopt a strategy focusing on capital preservation and creation, in particular involving the reduction in higher
margin risk-weighted assets, over revenue and profit growth.

Deutsche Bank Item 3: Key Information 11
A

capital markets and obtain the necessary funding to support our business activities; should these perceptions
worsen, our ability to obtain this financing on acceptable terms may be adversely affected. Among other things,
an inability to refinance assets on our balance sheet or maintain appropriate levels of capital to protect against
deteriorations in their value could force us to liquidate assets we hold at depressed prices or on unfavourable
terms, and could also force us to curtail business, such as the extension of new credit. This could have an
adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
As a result of funding pressures arising from the European sovereign debt crisis, there has been increased
intervention by a number of central banks, in particular the European Central Bank (“ECB”) and the U.S.
Federal Reserve. The ECB has directly intervened in European sovereign debt markets through the purchase
of affected countries’ debt instruments and, starting in December 2011, has agreed to provide low-interest
secured loans to European financial institutions for up to three years. The U.S. Federal Reserve has expanded
its provision of U.S. dollar liquidity to the ECB which can then be accessed by European banks. To date a
number of financial institutions have utilized these funding sources in order to maintain or enhance their liquid-
ity. To the extent these incremental measures are reduced or curtailed this could adversely impact funding
markets for all European institutions, including ourselves, leading to an increase in funding costs, or reduced
funding supply, which could result in a reduction in business activity. In addition, negative perceptions concern-

Deutsche Bank Item 3: Key Information 12
A
nnual Report 2011 on Form 20-F ing our business and prospects could develop as a result of large losses, changes of our credit ratings, a gen-
eral decline in the level of business activity in the financial services sector, regulatory action, serious employee

ence difficulty in funding ourselves in a manner permitting us to conduct our business without needing to dis-
pose of significant volumes of assets.
Market declines and volatility can materially and adversely affect our revenues and profits.
As a global investment bank, we have significant exposure to the financial markets and are more at risk from
the adverse developments in the financial markets than institutions engaged predominantly in traditional bank-
ing activities. Market declines have caused and can in the future cause our revenues to decline, and, if we are
unable to reduce our expenses at the same pace, can cause our profitability to erode, as it did in the third quar-
ter of 2011, or cause us to show material losses, as it did in 2008. Volatility, which was again particularly high
during the third quarter of 2011, can also adversely affect us, by causing the value of financial assets we hold
to decline or the expense of hedging our risks to rise.

Deutsche Bank Item 3: Key Information 13
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nnual Report 2011 on Form 20-F

We have incurred and may in the future incur significant losses from our trading and investment
activities due to market fluctuations.
We enter into and maintain large trading and investment positions in the fixed income, equity and currency
markets, primarily through our Corporate Banking & Securities Corporate Division. We also from time to time
hold significant investments in individual companies, primarily through our Corporate Investments and Corpo-
rate & Investment Bank Group Divisions. We also maintain smaller trading and investment positions in other
assets. Many of these trading positions include derivative financial instruments.
In each of the product and business lines in which we enter into these kinds of positions, part of our business
entails making assessments about the financial markets and trends in them. The revenues and profits we
Deutsche Bank Item 3: Key Information 14
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nnual Report 2011 on Form 20-F Adverse economic conditions have caused and may in the future cause us to incur higher credit
losses.
Adverse economic conditions such as those experienced during the recent financial crisis have caused and
may in the future cause us to incur higher credit losses. Our provision for credit losses was € 1.1 billion in 2008,
€ 2.6 billion in 2009, € 1.3 billion in 2010 and € 1.8 billion in 2011. Significant provisions occurred in both our
Corporate & Investment Bank and Private Clients and Asset Management Group Divisions.
In the second half of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009, as permitted by amendments to IFRS, we reclassified
certain financial assets out of financial assets carried at fair value through profit or loss or available for sale into
loans. While such reclassified assets, which had a carrying value of € 22.9 billion as of December 31, 2011, are
no longer subject to mark-to-market accounting, we continue to be exposed to the risk of impairment of such
assets. In addition, we bear additional funding and capital costs with respect to them. Of our provisions for
credit losses in 2009, 2010 and 2011, the provisions attributable to these reclassified assets were € 1.3 billion,
€ 0.3 billion and € 0.2 billion, respectively.
Even where losses are for our clients’ accounts, they may fail to repay us, leading to decreased
volumes of client business and material losses for us, and our reputation can be harmed.
While our clients would be responsible for losses we incur in taking positions for their accounts, we may be
exposed to additional credit risk as a result of their need to cover the losses where we do not hold adequate

Deutsche Bank Item 3: Key Information 15
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nnual Report 2011 on Form 20-F

Our risk management policies, procedures and methods leave us exposed to unidentified or
unanticipated risks, which could lead to material losses.
We have devoted significant resources to developing our risk management policies, procedures and assess-
ment methods and intend to continue to do so in the future. Nonetheless, the risk management techniques and
strategies have not been and may in the future not be fully effective in mitigating our risk exposure in all eco-
nomic market environments or against all types of risk, including risks that we fail to identify or anticipate.
Some of our quantitative tools and metrics for managing risk are based upon our use of observed historical
market behavior. We apply statistical and other tools to these observations to arrive at quantifications of our
risk exposures. During the recent financial crisis, the financial markets experienced unprecedented levels of
volatility (rapid changes in price direction) and the breakdown of historically observed correlations (the extent to
which prices move in tandem) across asset classes, compounded by extremely limited liquidity. In this volatile
market environment, our risk management tools and metrics failed to predict some of the losses we experi-
enced, particularly in 2008, and may in the future fail to predict future important risk exposures. In addition, our
quantitative modeling does not take all risks into account and makes numerous assumptions regarding the
overall environment, which may not be borne out by events. As a result, risk exposures have arisen and could
continue to arise from factors we did not anticipate or correctly evaluate in our statistical models. This has
limited and could continue to limit our ability to manage our risks especially in light of the ongoing European
sovereign debt crisis, many of the outcomes of which are currently unforeseeable. Our losses thus have been
and may continue to be significantly greater than the historical measures indicate.
In addition, our more qualitative approach to managing those risks not taken into account by our quantitative
methods could also prove insufficient, exposing us to material unanticipated losses. Also, if existing or potential
customers or counterparties believe our risk management is inadequate, they could take their business else-
where or seek to limit their transactions with us. This could harm our reputation as well as our revenues and
profits. See “Item 11: Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Credit, Market and Other Risk” for a more
detailed discussion of the policies, procedures and methods we use to identify, monitor and manage our risks.
Our non-traditional credit businesses materially add to our traditional banking credit risks.

ability to transact future business, as well as increased costs to us.
The exceptionally difficult market conditions experienced during the recent global financial crisis have severely
adversely affected certain areas in which we do business that entail nontraditional credit risks, including the
leveraged finance and structured credit markets, and may do so in the future.
We operate in an increasingly regulated and litigious environment, potentially exposing us to liability
and other costs, the amounts of which may be difficult to estimate.
The financial services industry is among the most highly regulated industries. Our operations throughout the
world are regulated and supervised by the central banks and regulatory authorities in the jurisdictions in which
we operate. In recent years, regulation and supervision in a number of areas has increased, and regulators,
counterparties and others have sought to subject financial services providers to increasing responsibilities and
liabilities. This trend has accelerated markedly as a result of the recent global financial crisis and the ongoing
European sovereign debt crisis. As a result, we may be subject to an increasing incidence or amount of liability
or regulatory sanctions and may be required to make greater expenditures and devote additional resources to
address potential liability.
Due to the nature of our business, we and our subsidiaries are involved in litigation, arbitration and regulatory
proceedings in jurisdictions around the world. Such matters are subject to many uncertainties, and the out-
come of individual matters is not predictable with assurance. We may settle litigation or regulatory proceedings
prior to a final judgment or determination of liability. We may do so to avoid the cost, management efforts or
negative business, regulatory or reputational consequences of continuing to contest liability, even when we
believe we have valid defenses to liability. We may also do so when the potential consequences of failing to
prevail would be disproportionate to the costs of settlement. Furthermore, we may, for similar reasons, reim-
burse counterparties for their losses even in situations where we do not believe that we are legally compelled
to do so. The financial impact of legal risks might be considerable but may be hard or impossible to estimate
and to quantify, so that amounts eventually paid may exceed the amount of reserves set aside to cover such
risks. See “Item 8: Financial Information – Legal Proceedings” and Note 28 “Provisions” to our consolidated
financial statements for information on our legal, regulatory and arbitration proceedings.
Regulatory reforms enacted and proposed in response to the global financial crisis and the European
sovereign debt crisis (in addition to increased capital requirements) may significantly affect our
business model and the competitive environment.
In response to the global financial crisis and the European sovereign debt crisis, governments, regulatory au-

including our “flow” businesses. These elements and their effects may also require us to invest significant
management attention and resources to make any necessary changes in order to comply with the new
regulations.
Bank levies have also been introduced in some countries including Germany and the United Kingdom and are
still under discussion in a number of other countries. In 2011, we accrued € 247 million for the German and U.K.
bank levies. The impact of future levies cannot currently be quantified and they may have a material adverse
effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition in future periods.
For some proposals for financial industry reform, formal consultations and impact studies have begun, while
other proposals are only in the political debating stage. It is presently unclear which of these proposals, if any,
will become law and, if so, to what extent and on what terms. Therefore, we cannot assess their effects on us
at this point. It is possible, however, that the future regulatory framework for financial institutions may change,
perhaps significantly, which creates significant uncertainty for us and the financial industry in general. Regula-
tion may be imposed on an ad hoc basis by governments and regulators in response to the ongoing or future
crises, especially affecting systemically important financial institutions such as us. Effects of the regulatory
changes on us may range from additional administrative costs to implement and comply with new rules to
increased costs of funding and/or capital, up to restrictions on our growth and on the businesses we are per-
mitted to conduct. Should proposals be adopted that require us to materially alter our business model, the
resulting changes could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial
condition as well as on our prospects.
We have been subject to contractual claims and litigation in respect of our U.S. residential mortgage
loan business that may materially and adversely affect our results or reputation.
From 2005 through 2008, as part of our U.S. residential mortgage loan business, we sold approximately
U.S.$ 84 billion of loans into private label securitizations and U.S.$ 71 billion through whole loan sales, includ-
ing to U.S. government-sponsored entities such as the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation and the
Federal National Mortgage Association. We have been, and in the future may be, presented with demands to
repurchase loans or indemnify purchasers, other investors or financial insurers with respect to losses allegedly
caused by material breaches of representations and warranties. Our general practice is to process valid repur-
chase claims that are presented in compliance with contractual rights. Where we believe no such valid basis
for repurchase claims exists, we reject them and no longer consider them outstanding for our tracking pur-
poses. We will continue to contest invalid claims vigorously as necessary and appropriate. As of December 31,