Commerzbank: Berlin would be ready to sell its stake











Photo credit © Reuters


(Boursier.com) — Germany would now be ready to sell its stake in Commerzbank to a European bank. Officials from the Ministry of Finance, the largest shareholder in Germany’s second-largest bank, have raised the possibility with senior executives of potential European buyers this year, Bloomberg sources say. Any deal should ensure that Commerzbank continues to support the local economy by being rooted in the country, the agency’s sources point out.

These informal contacts are nevertheless the clearest sign yet that the new government, formed at the end of last year, is seeking to exit the lender, bailed out with billions of euros in public money at the height of the financial crisis. Germany still holds 15.6% of Commerzbank’s round. Berlin, however, would like to wait for Commerzbank’s share price to rebound and the fallout from the war in Ukraine to subside before shifting into high gear. Given the company’s current low valuation, a sale of that stake to a larger establishment would likely pave the way for a takeover. A higher price would thus allow the State to obtain a more important position within the new combined group.

In the absence of a reconciliation with the Deutsche Bank, BNP Paribas, ING Group or UniCredit could come back after approaching the German government about a potential purchase over the past decade. The ‘Financial Times’ recently mentioned discussions between the German bank and UniCredit with a view to a possible merger.

The government’s share in Commerzbank is not designed to be permanent, a finance ministry spokeswoman told the agency. She said the decision on what to do with it would be made by a committee made up of members from various ministries.

A deal, which would undoubtedly result in one of the largest cross-border transactions within Europe’s financial industry, could trigger the long-awaited wave of consolidation in the region’s sector. The recent move by global regulators to treat the eurozone as a single jurisdiction, thereby removing the threat of higher capital requirements for lenders consolidating into the bloc, could also facilitate this type of operation.


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