Deutsche Bank has named Werner Schmidt as its replacement for Simon Sayer, who will retire from the position of global head of structured trade and export finance (STEF) in September.

Schmidt (pictured), currently head of STEF Germany, will continue to be directly responsible for the German STEF business from his base in Frankfurt, in addition to his new role.

Schmidt rejoined Deutsche in 2011 at a time when the bank implemented a new setup which saw regional heads running the STEF business, rather than one single global position overseeing the direction of the division. He was appointed head of STEF Germany, a role he has held ever since.

He had originally spent almost 18 years with the bank between 1979 and 1997, much of which in Asia, before moving to UniCredit, where he served in a variety of roles before being named regional head of international financial institutions for Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa.

Commenting on his decision to retire, Sayer says: “I have been very lucky that Deutsche has been the perfect platform for a career in export finance, with a large global network, primary focus on its corporate client base, a full tool kit in terms of rates, FX, DCM, and unwavering commitment to trade and export finance, which has been in the bank’s DNA since the very beginning.”

Sayer joined Deutsche Bank in January 1997 and was appointed head of STEF for the bank’s Europe, Middle East & Africa division in 2006, before being promoted to global co-ordinator in 2011 and global head in 2017. He has more than 25 years’ experience in trade and export finance, having spent 11 years working in trade finance and capital markets for Lloyds Bank prior to joining Deutsche.