Deutsche Bank Q1 earnings fall to $610 million as rate-rigging penalties hit bottom line

FRANKFURT, Germany – Deutsche Bank says net profit fell to 559 million euros ($610 million) in the first quarter as legal penalties ate into stronger revenues from trading stocks and bonds.

Profits were down from 1.103 billion euros in the year-ago quarter.

The bank had to deduct 1.5 billion euros from earnings to account for penalties it has agreed to pay to authorities in the U.S. and Britain to settle investigations into the bank's role in rigging key interest rate benchmarks.

The bank said Sunday that revenue rose in the quarter by 24 percent from a year ago, to 10.4 billion euros. The bank credited stronger income from stock and bond trading and more robust financial markets. Favorable shifts in currency exchange rates also helped.