A former head of a private banking team at Deutsche Bank's Frankfurt office has been handed a two-year suspended prison sentence for misappropriating more than €626,000 ($718,400) from wealthy clients.

The Frankfurt Regional Court found the 39-year-old man guilty of aggravated breach of trust on Thursday. Due to German privacy regulations, the defendant has only been identified as Sven R.

According to court proceedings, Sven R. exploited internal fund transfer procedures at the bank, beginning his illicit activities in late 2023. His scheme continued undetected until it was uncovered in the spring of 2025.

Sven R. admitted guilt on the first day of his trial. In his testimony, he explained that he deliberately targeted the accounts of more affluent clients, reasoning that the amounts taken would be "relatively small" compared to their overall wealth and thus less likely to attract attention.

The defendant's fraudulent activity involved two distinct methods. Initially, he executed individual transfers ranging from €50,000 to €81,500. Subsequently, he shifted tactics and began siphoning funds from an inheritance in smaller increments of €2,500 per transaction.

The fraudulent activity affected approximately six clients in total.