Business

Deutsche Bank losing staff over salaries

Talk about sturm und drang!

Sources tell The Post that there’s unrest over compensation at Germany’s Deutsche Bank and that it’s creating a talent drain as bankers and traders head for the exits.

According to people familiar with the matter, a number of employees — including some of the bank’s most talented and highest-paid people — are feeling that they aren’t being fairly compensated for their work in helping the bank weather the financial crisis without having to be bailed out by the German government.

Sources said the frustration has the potential for creating a real headache for CEO Josef Ackermann, who runs the risk of losing talent in the bank’s trading operation, which is considered the second-most profitable behind Goldman Sachs.

One group of bond traders that has already left over pay includes Jerry Cudzil and David Malvern, who were part of a team that took over a book of business from Deutsche Bank’s former head of credit trading, Boaz Weinstein.

Cudzil and Malvern handed in their resignations last week to join Morgan Stanley, according to sources, arguing that their team played a key role in helping nurse back to health Weinstein’s portfolio, which had suffered major losses in the meltdown. Since being rehabilitated it has generated millions in revenue for the bank.

The pair, who could not be reached for comment, are expected to start at Morgan Stanley sometime in the spring.

Another star mortgage trader, Greg Lippmann, is also said to be negotiating with Deutsche management over remaining at the firm after his fixed-income group generated blowout numbers by purchasing out-of-favor debt, including residential mortgage securities, that shot up in value as the shaky US economy stabilized.

Sources said Lippmann has considered joining another former Deutsche executive, Fred Brettschneider, who was the head of the bank’s global markets, in starting a new firm. However, Lippmann may stay at the firm.

A spokeswoman at Deutsche declined to comment on personnel or compensation.

However, sources said that Deutsche management believes it’s adequately paying its employees but is being confronted by an unusual wave of poaching from rivals like Morgan Stanley, Citigroup and Credit Suisse.

Indeed, in July Ackermann boasted Deutsche Bank had a “comparative advantage” over other firms because Germany wasn’t planning on taxing bonuses.