Enrico Bondi, Parmalat's government-appointed administrator, on Monday intensified his fight against the world's biggest banks when he sued Deutsche Bank to recover €17m the German lender ordered Parmalat to repay two weeks before it plunged into bankruptcy.

Parmalat claims the bank dictated to a top executive the exact phrasing of the dairy group's letter announcing its repayment of €17m in export credits and overdrafts. This was done to hide the origin of the repayment decision, a person familiar with the suit said.