Germany's Deutsche Bank AG discovered a glitch in its IT system that scans corporate client transactions for suspicious activity, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing a source.

The problem hindered a process whereby the bank would evaluate payments and notify regulators of anything suspicious. The glitch may have been there for nearly 10 years, the source said.

The person also said the problem was discovered by European employees and was reported to regulators, and is being investigated by the bank.

It is unknown what companies, countries or types of cash flows were affected by the issue, which was first reported by Germany's Süddeutsche Zeitung newspaper.