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Deutsche Bank Tells Court It Has Some Tax Returns Related to Trump Inquiry Deutsche Bank Tells Court It Has Some Tax Returns Related to Trump Inquiry
(about 1 hour later)
Deutsche Bank told a federal appeals court on Tuesday that it was in possession of some tax returns sought by congressional subpoenas issued earlier this year to President Trump, his family and his businesses.Deutsche Bank told a federal appeals court on Tuesday that it was in possession of some tax returns sought by congressional subpoenas issued earlier this year to President Trump, his family and his businesses.
In a letter to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the German lender wrote that it “has in its possession tax returns (in either draft or as-filed form).” In the publicly available document, the identities of the people or organizations behind the tax returns were redacted. The full unredacted version was submitted under seal. In a letter to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the German lender wrote that it “has in its possession tax returns (in either draft or as-filed form).”
The letter was a response to a question posed to lawyers for two financial institutions — Deutsche Bank and Capital One — that were issued subpoenas by two House committees in April. Although the identities of the people or organizations were redacted in the publicly available document, current and former bank officials have said Deutsche Bank has portions of Mr. Trump’s personal and corporate tax returns for multiple years as part of the reams of financial data it has collected over its two-decade relationship with him.
Capital One, which also responded on Tuesday, said it “does not possess any tax returns responsive to the Capital One subpoena.” The bank’s lawyers also said Deutsche Bank “has such documents related to parties not named in the subpoenas but who may constitute ‘immediate family’ within the definition provided in the subpoenas.”
The subpoenas request documents related to Mr. Trump’s businesses, his in-laws, his children and even his grandchildren from Deutsche Bank, Mr. Trump’s primary lender over the past two decades, and Capital One, where he has also kept some of his money. The letter — a full unredacted version was submitted under seal — was in response to a question posed last week to lawyers for Deutsche Bank and Capital One, the two financial institutions that were issued subpoenas by House committees in April. Capital One also responded on Tuesday, saying it “does not possess any tax returns responsive to the Capital One subpoena.”
Mr. Trump, his company and his three eldest children — Donald Jr., Eric and Ivanka — filed a lawsuit to block the banks from complying, but a federal judge denied the family’s request in May. Mr. Trump’s tax returns have been a matter of intense curiosity since he declined to release them during the 2016 campaign, breaking with decades of candidate tradition. But a lawyer for the congressional committees said at last week’s hearing there was good reason to seek the documents.
The financial services committee, as part of an examination of money laundering in real estate, is looking at Mr. Trump’s finances to determine whether he helped Russians and other foreign buyers launder money through his properties, said the committees’ lawyer, Douglas Letter. He said the intelligence committee was trying to determine whether Mr. Trump’s financial dealings made him subject to foreign influence.
Deutsche Bank has long been Mr. Trump’s primary lender. For most years, it has only the first several pages of his tax returns, according to the current and former bank officials, but the bank possesses far more detailed financial data. That includes balance sheets, financial statements and documents detailing the organization of Mr. Trump’s web of businesses, the people said.
Congressional investigators believe those documents could be more helpful than the tax returns to understanding Mr. Trump’s web of businesses and sources of his money.
Deutsche Bank gathered most of the financial information starting in 2011. That year, the private-banking division of the company, which caters to the ultra-wealthy, struck up a relationship with Mr. Trump and his family. Other units of the bank were opposed to that relationship, because Mr. Trump had defaulted on his debts to the bank. At the time, the bank’s files on Mr. Trump, which included portions of his tax returns and other materials, were shared widely among senior executives and bank lawyers as they weighed whether to do business with him.
Deutsche Bank ultimately decided to greenlight the relationship, and over the next five years the private-banking division lent Mr. Trump and his companies about $350 million.
The subpoenas requested documents related to Mr. Trump’s businesses, his in-laws, his children and even his grandchildren from Deutsche Bank and Capital One, where he has also kept some of his money. Mr. Trump, his company and his three eldest children — Donald Jr., Eric and Ivanka — filed a lawsuit to block the banks from complying, but a federal judge denied the family’s request in May.
On Friday, a three-judge appeals court panel heard arguments from lawyers for Mr. Trump and the two Democrat-controlled committees that issued the subpoenas, the House Financial Services Committee and the House Intelligence Committee.On Friday, a three-judge appeals court panel heard arguments from lawyers for Mr. Trump and the two Democrat-controlled committees that issued the subpoenas, the House Financial Services Committee and the House Intelligence Committee.
During the hearing, the panel asked whether the banks had Mr. Trump’s tax returns, and the lawyers said they would provide more information to the court via letter.During the hearing, the panel asked whether the banks had Mr. Trump’s tax returns, and the lawyers said they would provide more information to the court via letter.
This is a developing story. It will be updated. Mr. Trump’s lawyers have said the subpoenas were overly broad and served no legitimate legislative purpose, arguments that were repeated at the hearing last week.
“I don’t think this type of subpoena supports a legislative inquiry,” Patrick Strawbridge, a lawyer for Mr. Trump, said during arguments. “The only reason they have focused on these particular plaintiffs is because they want to investigate these plaintiffs.”
Mr. Letter told the panel that the request for a wide range of documents was necessary. “We are doing an extremely broad investigation,” he said. “Obviously if you’re laundering Russian money, moving it to the United States, you need to see how it’s handled domestically.”
The appeals panel did not indicate when it would issue its ruling.