Deutsche Bank top management gets bonuses for first time in four years

Reuters
FILE PHOTO: Outside view of the Deutsche Bank and the Commerzbank headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany, March 18, 2019. REUTERS/Ralph Orlowski/File Photo

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Deutsche Bank's management board members were handed their first bonuses in four years, according to the bank's annual report published on Friday.

The management board received total pay, including bonuses, of 55.7 million euros ($63.39 million) in 2018, up from 29.8 million euros a year earlier, Deutsche Bank's annual report said.

The bank's bonus pool for 2018 was 1.9 billion euros, down 14 percent from 2.3 billion euros a year earlier. The decline is partly due to a reduction in headcount, the bank said.

Litigation costs are also expected to be "significantly higher" in 2019 than in 2018, the bank also said in the report.

Deutsche Bank is talking to rival Commerzbank about a proposed merger, which unions have said could result in big job cuts.

($1 = 0.8787 euros)

(Reporting by Tom Sims; Editing by Riham Alkousaa and Jane Merriman)