Deutsche Bank is mulling service centre in Lithuania, agency confirms

Germany’s biggest commercial bank is considering opening a service centre in Lithuania, according to the head of the government’s investment promotion agency.

“They are evaluating various options, starting with a service centre,” Elijus Čivilis, chief of Invest Lithuania, told BNS in an interview on Friday.

He said representatives of the German bank were disappointed that the media reported their potential plans in Lithuania in November last year.

“Deutsche Bank is one of our clients, but they are very sensitive to all kinds of things because of their size, their impact, the sensitivity of their sector. They visited Lithuania,” explained the head of Invest Lithuania.

According to Čivilis, negotiations with Deutsche Bank are continuing, but he could not say when the bank would make the final decision.

Elijus Čivilis | P. Peleckis / BNS

The head of Invest Lithuania did not directly link Deutsche Bank’s plans to the deployment of a German brigade in Lithuania, but acknowledged that military cooperation between the two countries promotes business relations too.

“Take Poland as an example – when they decided to rely for all their armaments on South Korean manufacturers, naturally South Korea has become one of their biggest investors in the last two years. This creates a relationship that brings the countries closer together more naturally,” said Čivilis.

BNS reported last November citing its sources that Deutsche Bank was considering opening a service centre. According to the sources, the bank’s representatives visited Vilnius in mid-October, where they met with officials from the President’s Office, the Ministry of Economy and Invest Lithuania. The Germans were presented with the investment potential of opening a centre and also looked for a suitable office.