Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Former trader sues Deutsche Bank for unpaid £2.6m bonus

Shikha Gupta worked until 2017 for Deutsche Bank’s non-core operating unit

Former trader sues Deutsche Bank for unpaid £2.6m bonus

A former Deutsche Bank trader is suing the bank in a London court for just over £2.6 million after she was not paid an individual bonus nearly a decade ago, though Germany's largest lender says it simply could not afford it.

Shikha Gupta worked until 2017 for Deutsche Bank's non-core operating unit, which was set up in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis to streamline its operations.


Gupta says she helped dispose of billions of dollars of assets for Deutsche Bank, in particular helping it pay a $7.2 billion (£5.7bn) settlement in 2016 with the US Department of Justice over pre-crisis sales of mortgage-backed securities.

Her lawyers said at the start of a trial at London's High Court that Gupta was an exceptional employee who was promised a considerable individual bonus, but was given just £21,250 alongside her colleagues for 2016.

Deutsche Bank, however, says no formal guarantee was provided to Gupta that she would receive an individual bonus. The lender's lawyers also said Deutsche was making over 9,000 employees redundant, nearly 10 per cent of its global workforce.

"Most employers, at least in financial services, would like to pay bonuses to employees based on their performance," Deutsche Bank's lawyer James Laddie said in court documents, "but whether they can do so depends on whether they can afford it."

Laddie said the bank was "in dire straits" in 2016 and the decision was therefore made to not have an individual bonus pool.

Gupta, who now works for Astra Asset Management, said in a written witness statement that she was "responsible for de-risking almost all of the bank's cash and ABS derivatives".

She added: "I feel they have breached the trust that I, as an employee, had placed in the institution."

Laddie, however, said Gupta was not paid an individual bonus "because of a bank-wide decision that it was unaffordable".

(Reuters)

More For You

tata-steel-green

Artist’s impression of Tata Steel’s state-of-the-art Electric Arc Furnace facility being built in Port Talbot. (Image credit: Tata Steel)

Tata Steel

Tata Steel hires local firms for Port Talbot project, creating 300 jobs

TATA STEEL has appointed three South Wales contractors to support its £1.25 billion investment in green steelmaking at Port Talbot. The contracts will create over 300 skilled jobs in the local supply chain.

Bridgend-based Darlow Lloyd & Sons will oversee excavation, recycling, infrastructure, and drainage work for the transition to Electric Arc Furnace (EAF) steelmaking.

Keep ReadingShow less
 Survey Reveals More Britons Reducing Everyday Spending

About 43 per cent of consumers said they were cutting back on everyday purchases, while more than a third reported increasing their savings as a precaution. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Survey shows more Britons cutting back on everyday expenses

CONSUMERS in the UK are reducing spending on everyday items as confidence in the economy declines ahead of chancellor Rachel Reeves’s spring statement, according to a KPMG survey.

The survey, conducted among 3,000 UK consumers, found that 58 per cent believed the economy was worsening in the three months to February, up 15 percentage points from the previous quarter, The Guardian reported.

Keep ReadingShow less
23andMe

Many users trusted 23andMe with some of their most sensitive personal information

Getty Images

DNA data of millions at risk as 23andMe declares bankruptcy

The recent Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing by genetic testing company 23andMe has raised serious concerns about the privacy and security of the DNA data of millions of users. Founded in 2006, 23andMe has long been a leader in consumer genetic testing, offering individuals insights into their predisposition to various diseases and the possibility of connecting with unknown relatives. However, with the company now seeking buyers in bankruptcy proceedings, the sale of this genetic data has become a source of alarm for privacy advocates and experts.

Many users trusted 23andMe with some of their most sensitive personal information, their DNA. However, as the company faces financial struggles, privacy experts warn that the future handling of this data may be far less secure. Tazin Kahn, CEO of the nonprofit Cyber Collective, which promotes privacy and cybersecurity for marginalised groups, expressed deep concern about the potential consequences. “Folks have absolutely no say in where their data is going to go,” she said. “How can we be so sure that the downstream impact of whoever purchases this data will not be catastrophic?”

Keep ReadingShow less
uk construction

The construction sector accounts for around 6 per cent of gross domestic product and supports growth in other industries.

iStock

Government pledges £600 million to address construction skills gap

BRITAIN will invest £600 million to train construction workers and address skills shortages that could affect its plan to build 1.5 million homes by 2029 and support economic growth, the government announced on Saturday.

Housebuilding and infrastructure development are central to the Labour government’s growth strategy. The construction sector accounts for around 6 per cent of gross domestic product and supports growth in other industries.

Keep ReadingShow less
Rachel Reeves Targets 15% Reduction in Government Spending by 2029

The announcement comes as Reeves prepares to present her Spring Statement on Wednesday, outlining spending cuts across various departments. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Rachel Reeves plans 15 per cent cut in government costs by 2029

CHANCELLOR Rachel Reeves said Sunday that the government aims to cut the costs of running its operations by 15 per cent within four years.

The announcement comes as she prepares to present her Spring Statement on Wednesday, outlining spending cuts across various departments.

Keep ReadingShow less