Regulation

Changes to the legal framework at the national or European level could pose risks to our business. This general regulatory risk could therefore result in tangible negative effects on profit and loss.

These regulations govern, among other things, the individual components of the pricing systems and general terms and conditions applied by our rail infrastructure companies. There are risks of complaints and intervention in this regard. Measures that threaten or even prevent DB Group from attaining reasonable yields in its infrastructure business units (such as an intervention in pricing systems) can therefore threaten financing contributions by DB Group to capital expenditures in infrastructure.

With regard to infrastructure pricing systems, there are significant risks, provided that the increases in prices in regional rail passenger transport for 2025 are limited to 0.6% by the Federal Network Agency and no compensating measures are implemented by Government funds. If these risks were to arise and be passed on to the TOCs in long-distance and freight transport through corresponding increases in prices, there would be significant negative effects on the business models of the TOCs in these segments. A significant increase in train-path and station prices would result in a significant deterioration in the results of all DB Long-Distance sub-networks and would bring into question the profitability of indi­vidual transport services. The overall structure of the scheduling, vehicle and maintenance needs would have to be fundamentally reassessed. This would make it only possible to implement Germany in sync in a sig­nificantly reduced form.

Political risks concern in particular a tightening of existing standards and regulations affecting the railways. The structure of DB Group may also be exposed to regulatory risks.

With regard to risks from changed legal and regulatory framework conditions at a national and international level, we are bringing our position into the preceding discussions and debates. If political or regulatory risks occur, countermeasures are implemented at the corporate level, where possible, in order to minimize the potential negative effects on corporate goals and traffic growth.

Opportunities result from the promotion of green mobility and logistics, including to achieve Federal Government climate protection targets.