Deutsche Bank Forms Fund of Funds Unit

Deutsche Bank is forming a fund of funds arm by combining three businesses that will manage about €6 billion ($8 billion) of private equity assets.

The firm will unite the private equity group of Deutsche Bank Private Wealth Management; the secondaries private equity team of RREEF, also a unit of the bank; and the recently acquired Sal. Oppenheim Private Equity Partners to create the new group, which will be called DB Private Equity.

Chris Minter will serve as the global head of the newly united shop. Minter has held several positions at Deutsche Bank during the past nine years. Most recently he served as the head of business development for the asset management division. He also oversaw the firm’s corporate investment unit and has broad experience with private equity, said a spokesperson. Minter will report to Kevin Parker, global head of Deutsche Asset Management. Rolf Wickenkamp will serve as vice chairman of DB Private Equity. He was previously a partner at Sal. Oppenheim Private Equity.

In November, Deutsche Bank said it would acquire investment banking firm Sal. Oppenheim Group, including the holding company Sal. Oppenheim Private Equity Partners, for about €1.3 billion, as previously reported in Buyouts. Sal. Oppenheim Group’s funds-of-funds unit had about €5 billion in assets under management, as of June 30. At that time, Deutsche Bank’s private equity group managed more than $3 billion.

Deutsche Bank has ran into trouble in the past when it tried to expand into funds of funds. In 2007, the bank announced it had agreed to acquire a stake in Aldus Equity, a Texas-based private equity consulting firm run by Saul Meyer. The bank intended to create a partnership with Aldus to develop funds of funds for institutional and wealthy investors. But in 2009, Meyer was arrested and charged with one count of securities fraud. That day, Deutsche Bank sold back its stake in Aldus Equity to the firm. According to Meyer’s guilty plea, between January 2003 and February 2009, he paid Hank Morris, a political advisor and placement agent, 35 percent of the management fees Aldus earned from the New York State Common Retirement Fund in exchange for investments from the pension fund.

The firm would not comment on any upcoming fundraising or commitment activity.