Germany rejects UniCredit’s share exchange offer for Commerzbank

Germany's national authorities person refused UniCredit's connection to swap shares for a involvement successful Commerzbank, reaffirming absorption to immoderate woody betwixt the 2 banks.

The determination was taken by the interministerial steering committee of the Financial Market Stabilisation Fund, the assemblage that handles cardinal decisions related to the fund.

According to the government, the connection could not beryllium accepted connected fiscal grounds due to the fact that it failed to connection a capable premium to Commerzbank's prevailing stock price.

Officials besides reiterated enactment for Commerzbank remaining a standalone instauration and criticised UniCredit's approach.

They said Commerzbank remains important for backing businesses successful Germany, peculiarly the country's mid-sized firm sector.

The slope was besides described arsenic an important leader and a cardinal portion of Frankfurt's fiscal sector.

Germany owns 12% of Commerzbank, a holding dating backmost to the 2008 fiscal crisis, and has consistently resisted UniCredit's efforts to prosecute a combination.

UniCredit whitethorn inactive beryllium capable to unafraid power of Commerzbank, but the state's shareholding gives the authorities practice connected the bank's supervisory board, which is liable for appointing executives and monitoring direction.

The government's determination comes aft prosecutors received a transgression ailment from Commerzbank's workers' assembly recently.

The worker assemblage had told unit it intended to lodge the ailment against unnamed individuals amid concerns implicit UniCredit's acquisition of Commerzbank shares astatine a terms beneath marketplace value.

Officials besides reiterated enactment for Commerzbank remaining a standalone instauration and criticised UniCredit's approach.

UniCredit told Reuters that it was alert of the contented and that the prosecutors' absorption was "in enactment with protocol erstwhile specified complaints are filed".

Earlier this month, Commerzbank besides raised doubts implicit whether the expanding fig of shares submitted into UniCredit's connection reflects wider enactment from investors.

The lender pointed to shareholder information which, it said, showed "not a azygous organization capitalist identified arsenic having tendered shares into the offer".

It added that it was "reasonable presumption that the tendered shares stem astir exclusively from banks and parties connected to UniCredit".

In a connection published connected 15 June 2026, the Italian lender said: "All disclosures made by UniCredit person been afloat compliant with the requirements of the German Securities Trading Act and the German Takeover Act and person been conducted successful continuous, transparent dialog with BaFin."

The connection has been open since aboriginal May and is owed to tally until 16 June, though takeover rules could pb to an extension. 

"Germany rejects UniCredit's stock speech connection for Commerzbank " was primitively created and published by Retail Banker International, a GlobalData owned brand.