LONDON — Deutsche Bank said Thursday that it lost $ 6.6 billion in the third quarter, driven by a write-down of so-called intangible assets and of its holdings in a Chinese bank, and higher litigation charges.
The loss came as the German bank, which has a big presence on Wall Street, is expected to unveil an updated strategy Thursday. The new co-chief executive, John Cryan, is trying to overhaul the institution.
The bank announced this month a series of management changes and plans to split its investment bank in two. The lender said Wednesday that it was suspending its dividend for this and the 2016 fiscal years, in connection with new financial targets as part of its updated strategy.
The loss was primarily driven by 5.8 billion euros, or $ 6.4 billion, in charges related to the write-down of intangible assets. The bank also booked a charge of €649 million as it wrote down its 19.99 percent stake in Huaxia Bank of China and €1.2 billion in additional litigation charges.
Among its litigation and regulatory issues, Deutsche Bank is preparing to pay at least $ 200 million to resolve investigations into its dealings with countries like Iran and Syria, according to officials briefed on the matter. The settlement with New York State's financial regulator and the Federal Reserve could be announced as soon as next week.
Although large, the loss was slightly better than Deutsche Bank's initial forecast this month, which called for a loss of as much as €6.2 billion in the third quarter.
"In the third quarter 2015 we reported a record net loss — a highly disappointing result that was largely driven by items we had already flagged earlier in October," Mr. Cryan said in a news release on Thursday.
Mr. Cyran joined the bank as co-chief executive in July, taking over from Anshu Jain, who had led efforts to make the bank a dominant player on Wall Street.
Mr. Jain resigned in part because of pressure from shareholders unhappy about inconsistent profits. The bank's other co-chief executive, Jürgen Fitschen, has said he will resign next year.
In the three months that ended Sept. 30, Deutsche Bank reported a loss of €6.02 billion, compared with a loss of €92 million in the third quarter of 2014.
The company said its revenue had declined 7 percent to €7.33 billion in the third quarter, from €7.86 billion in the same period a year earlier.
Excluding the impact of the write-down of its stake in Huaxia Bank, Deutsche Bank said its revenue in the third quarter was comparable to the same period last year despite "challenging market conditions."
Among the financial targets unveiled Wednesday, Deutsche Bank said it planned to cut its annual costs, excluding litigation, restructuring and other charges, to less than €22 billion. The company booked expenses of €27.7 billion in 2014.
The lender also said it was aiming for its so-called common equity Tier 1 capital to be equivalent to at least 12.5 percent of its assets from the end of 2018. That number was 11.5 percent at the end of September.
Deutsche Bank said it would seek to resume paying a dividend to shareholders in 2017 "at a competitive payout ratio."
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