Deutsche Bank AG's employees could see a steep reduction in their bonuses for 2019, as the German lender is said to be considering slashing discretionary compensation by up to 20%.

People with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg News that the board has yet to reach a final decision since the year is not over yet.

The plan, which would outpace a 5% cut in the lender's workforce so far in 2019, comes as Deutsche Bank is aiming to reduce costs by $6 billion in the coming years, Bloomberg noted.

In July, Deutsche mapped out plans to exit its equities sales and trading business and eliminate 18,000 jobs to bring its total headcount to 74,000 employees by 2022.