FRANKFURT • Deutsche Bank AG said Capital Group, already a top investor in the German lender, raised its stake further, in a vote of confidence in CEO Christian Sewing’s (picture) turnaround plan.

The Euro Pacific Growth Fund, part of the American Funds family of mutual funds that is run by the Los Angeles-based asset manager, held 3.61% of Deutsche Bank as of Oct 6, according to the German lender’s website. The stake is disclosed separately from the 3.74% holding that Capital Group reported owning as of March.

Assuming the two holdings don’t overlap and can be added up, the new holding would bring Capital Group’s total investment to about 7.4%, making it the bank’s biggest investor, ahead of BlackRock Inc, two Qatari investment vehicles, Doug Braunstein’s Hudson Executive Capital and Cerberus Capital Management.

“We are happy that Capital Group has increased their overall shareholding in Deutsche Bank,” a spokesman for the lender said by email. “We see this as a clear vote of confidence in our strategic transformation and its implementation.”

A spokeswoman for Capital Group wasn’t immediately able to comment.

Sewing is rolling back years of expansion as a global investment bank to focus on lending to German and European companies, while seeking to retain its prowess in fixed-income trading. Shares of the lender have gained about 15% over the past year while most of its rivals declined.

The disclosure comes days after Capital Group raised its stake in Commerzbank AG to become that bank’s second-largest investor behind the German government.

Capital Group is one of the most storied names in US money management. Founded in 1931, it has resisted the more recent trend toward passive investments that simply replicate indexes. — Bloomberg