FRANKFURT • United States special counsel Robert Mueller has asked Deutsche Bank for data on accounts held by President Donald Trump and his family, a person close to the matter said yesterday.

Mr Mueller is investigating alleged Russian attempts to influence the 2016 US presidential election and potential collusion by Trump aides.

Germany's largest bank received a subpoena from Mr Mueller several weeks ago to provide information on certain money and credit transactions, the person said, without giving details, adding key documents had been handed over in the meantime.

Deutsche Bank, which has loaned the Trump organisation hundreds of millions of dollars for real estate ventures, said it would not comment on any of its clients.

The bank rejected demands in June by US House Democrats to provide details of Mr Trump's finances, citing privacy laws.

A disclosure document posted on the US Office of Government Ethics website in June showed liabilities for Mr Trump of at least US$130 million (S$175.2 million) to Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas.

The German bank is one of the few major lenders that have lent large amounts to Mr Trump in the past decade. A string of bankruptcies at his hotel and casino businesses during the 1990s made most of Wall Street wary of extending him credit.

The bank gave the Trump International Hotel and Tower, Chicago, a loan of up to US$640 million, according to a 2012 property filing.

In January, Deutsche Bank agreed to pay US$630 million in fines for organising US$10 billion in sham trades that could have been used to launder money out of Russia.

REUTERS