Valentina Za and Christian Kramer
MILAN/BERLIN (Reuters) – Germany stepped up its opposition on Wednesday to UniCredit's raid on Italy's Commerzbank (ETR:) as the bank's biggest investors called for talks, which have been sought by the bank's Chief Executive Andrea Orsel.
Two weeks after UniCredit shocked politicians and investors by buying a large stake in Commerzbank and Mr Orsel floated the idea of an unusual cross-border merger for European banks, lines are being drawn.
The city of Berlin, which owns a 12 percent stake in Commerzbank, the bank's management and labor unions all oppose the deal, and a senior German government official has criticized UniCredit's moves as “aggressive” and “unwise”.
Orsel said he was considering all options, including exit, while also increasing his stake in UniCredit.
“At this point in time, Commerzbank is an investment for us and nothing more. There is no takeover offer or bid,” Orsel said at a Bank of America investor conference in London.
“We are certainly a large shareholder, a strategic shareholder, but this is an investment and people should comment and consider it as an investment, nothing more,” he said, adding that UniCredit would not seek a board seat at Commerzbank.
But Orsel said UniCredit had “repeatedly held discussions with several interested parties” before receiving a request from the German government to buy a 4.5 percent stake and urged further talks.
“We felt that was a normal outcome of that process, and that's the situation today, but we are very keen to resume the dialogue and have a constructive dialogue with all stakeholders,” he added.
UniCredit angered the German government this week by using derivatives to increase its stake in Commerzbank to nearly 21 percent, subject to European Central Bank approval.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz denounced the takeover as an “unfriendly attack” and Finance Minister Florian Tonkar on Wednesday warned UniCredit not to become hostile, saying such a deal carried big risks.
“It would not be wise to go too aggressive with large, highly regulated and complex banks,” Tonkar said after a closed-door meeting with the German lower house's finance committee. “In the end you always need the cooperation of stakeholders.”
Mr. Orsel's move marks a major test for European banking consolidation, long sought by regulators and bank executives but stymied by political opposition and the weakness of many banks to buy rivals.
That will also pose a challenge for Commerzbank's new CEO, Bettina Orlop, who takes over from her post as finance chief on Sept. 30 and will be tasked with blocking UniCredit's move against Germany's second-largest bank.
A large investor at Commerzbank on Wednesday urged the bank to negotiate with UniCredit.
“The cooperation with UniCredit does not in any way disadvantage Commerzbank,” said Alexandra Annecke, fund manager at Union Investment.
“We therefore expect a willingness to engage in open-ended dialogue,” Annecke added in a statement from Union Investment, which holds a 1.5 percent stake in Commerzbank.
Michael Schroedy, a member of Germany's governing coalition Social Democrats (SPD), criticised UniCredit's acquisition of a 21 percent stake in Commerzbank AG for “total secrecy”.
Commerzbank shares have soared since Mr. Orsel's move as investors bet on an all-out takeover bid from UniCredit, which is flush with cash after record profits and already has a strong presence in Germany through its ownership of HVB.
