Deutsche Bank may have to pay as much as €1.5 billion in a case tied to the collapse of the Kirch group of media companies, a Munich court said yesterday.

Judge Guido Kotschy said in a preliminary assessment of the case it is likely Deutsche Bank and former chief executive Rolf Breuer will be found liable in the lawsuit. The damages will range from €120 million to €1.5 billion, he said.

The case is one of several lawsuits continuing after Leo Kirch’s July 2011 death that allege the bank plotted to bring about the demise of his empire. Part of the conspiracy, they argue, was a 2002 interview on Bloomberg Television in which Breuer said “everything that you can read and hear” is that “the financial sector isn’t prepared to provide further” loans or equity to Kirch. Deutsche Bank and Breuer have denied the allegations. – (Bloomberg)