Italy’s UniCredit further expands stake in Germany’s Commerzbank #NewsGerman

Major Italian bank UniCredit is expanding its stake in German lender Commerzbank through financial instruments, with the total position now amounting to around 28%, the Italian bank announced on Wednesday.

The move is in line with the aim of expanding the stake to 29.9% and underlines UniCredit’s belief in a strong German banking sector, the Milan-based bank said.

The move has been widely seen as part of an eventual move by UniCredit to take over Commerzbank, although UniCredit has not announced any plans to expand its stake beyond 29.9%.

On Wednesday, the Italian bank again emphasized that its engagement with Commerzbank should currently be considered merely an investment.

Unicredit had already announced that it would seek approval for a Commerzbank stake of up to 29.9%: “The authorization process is now activated, and interactions with authorities ongoing.”

For an ownership stake of 30% or above, UniCredit would be obliged to submit a public takeover offer.

UniCredit now holds 9.5% in direct shares of Commerzbank and another roughly 18.5% through derivative instruments, according to the Italian bank.

“This move reinforces UniCredit’s view that substantial value exists within Commerzbank that needs to be crystallized,” UniCredit said in a press release announcing the move. “It reflects the belief in Germany, its businesses and its communities and the importance of a strong banking sector in powering Germany’s economic development.”

UniCredit said the increased position in Commerzbank would not have an impact on the bank’s parallel takeover bid for fellow Italian bank Banco BPM.

Muted reaction from Commerzbank

A Commerzbank spokesman declined to comment on the news, saying only: “We are taking note of this and are concentrating on the further development of our strategy, which we will publish on February 13.”

Commerzbank chief executive Bettina Orlopp had repeatedly emphasized the independence of her bank in the face of UniCredit’s growing stake.

In November, Orlopp said that UniCredit is “currently a strategic investor – no more and no less,” although she has also signalled openness to mutually beneficial deals.

UniCredit chief executive Andrea Orcel has repeatedly emphasized that he sees extensive synergies between the institutions – particularly between Commerzbank and UniCredit’s Munich-based subsidiary Hypovereinsbank (HVB).

UniCredit’s rising stake

Unicredit took advantage of the German government’s partial exit from its sizeable stake in Commerzbank in early September and made a large-scale entry into the German lender.

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