Deutsche Bank balks at $14B settlement offer following probe

Deutsche Bank isn’t going down without a fight.

The German bank, hit by US regulators with a proposed $14 billion preliminary settlement offer to end a mortgage securities probe, said the offer was DOA.

“Deutsche Bank has no intent to settle these potential civil claims anywhere near the number cited,” Michael Golden, a company spokesman, said in a statement.

“The negotiations are only just beginning,” the embattled bank said. “The bank expects that they will lead to an outcome similar to those of peer banks which have settled at materially lower amounts.”

The settlement offer came days ago, according to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported on the talks.

The settlement stems from bundles of crummy mortgage bonds that deteriorated and led to the financial crisis.

If the bank, led by Chief Executive Officer John Cryan, were to end up settling for that amount, it would be the second-largest fine stemming from the financial crisis — behind only Bank of America’s nearly $17 billion payment in 2008.