Financial Institution

Statement for the Shareholders

Several events have occurred over the past few months that will have an impact on our commercial and investment activities in Germany and the United States. We will discuss each of the events and the likely result on the bank's profitability, strategic business direction, and asset and liability consequences. The events to be analyzed are the raising of short-term rates by the European Central Bank, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requiring separation of underwriting services and stock research, declining reserves held at the United States Federal Reserve, the downgrading of credit ratings for corporate clients, and Berlin searching for an underwriter of municipal bonds.

The latest price indices from Europe indicate an acceleration of inflation in the European Union countries. To address the inflationary pressures the European Central Bank recently increased the equivalent of the United States discount rate. In the...
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