Deutsche Bank joins the Wall Street exodus for view of Central Park at New York’s Columbus Circle

Move comes as new CEO Christian Sewing sets out to restructure bank, which includes scaling back US operations

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The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade moves through Columbus Circle in New York. Deutsche Bank’s new Midtown address will be One Columbus Circle, which is part of the complex at the 80-story, twin-towered Time Warner Center. Photo: AP

Published: 8:03pm, 7 May 2018Updated: 8:03pm, 7 May 2018

Deutsche Bank is leaving Wall Street, moving its New York headquarters to midtown Manhattan, as the German investment bank embarks on a broad shake-up of its operations in the United States.

The company will lease 1.1 million sq ft of office space at Columbus Circle, slashing its footprint in the city by 30 per cent, the head of Deutsche Bank’s Americas business, Tom Patrick, wrote in a memo to staff on Friday. The company, which has been leasing offices at 60 Wall Street, will begin the move in the third quarter of 2021.

One mock-up of the bank’s new trading floor shows an expansive view of Central Park.

The departure from Wall Street is a milestone for the historic financial district in lower Manhattan, following a long exodus of major companies to other parts of the city. Banks remaining closest now include Goldman Sachs, headquartered near the site of the original World Trade Center at 200 West Street, while Citigroup is a stone’s throw away in Tribeca. More of the industry is further uptown.

“The relocation is an investment in our clients, in our employees and in our future long-term presence in the US,” Patrick wrote in the memo. “The new location will result in closer proximity to key clients, consolidate New York activities and provide employees with access to modern, state-of-the-art facilities, technology and amenities while retaining access to critical transport links.”

A sign for Wall Street outside the New York Stock Exchange. The exodus of major companies from the area around the bourse to Midtown began in the 1970s, as computerised trading freed banks and brokerages from having to deliver paper securities and cheques. Photo: EPA-EFE

The decision followed a 16-month review, according to the memo. Yet it comes just as new chief executive Christian Sewing sets out to restructure the investment bank, including scaling back operations in the US. That overhaul may eliminate more than 10 per cent of its workforce there, a person briefed on the matter said last week.