FRANKFURT — UniCredit respects German opposition to a full takeover of Commerzbank , but shareholders would have the last word on any potential deal, the Italian bank’s chief executive said on Thursday.
Over the past year, UniCredit has built up a 29 percent stake in the German bank and pressed for a tie-up, which Commerzbank opposes.
CEO Andrea Orcel, speaking at a conference, said UniCredit had not been able to table discussions over a possible combination of Commerzbank with the Milanese group’s local unit HVB.
“We’re very, very happy to have a constructive dialogue with anybody who wants to have it. So far, we have failed to have that dialogue,” he said.
A veteran dealmaker, Orcel has embarked on a sprawling M&A strategy over the past year, after driving a seven-fold increase in UniCredit’s share price since his arrival in 2021.
However, a bid for smaller peer Banco BPM has been thwarted by the Italian government, while the Commerzbank stake has angered Berlin.
“It’s a critical factor,” Orcel said when asked if UniCredit could bid for the whole of Commerzbank without German government support.
The equity portion of UniCredit’s stake is currently 26 percent and Orcel said UniCredit would convert the remaining derivative contracts into shares this year.
“Ultimately, all of us management team are accountable to our shareholders, people, and clients, not to governments. But we respect their position and we need to cooperate with it,” he added at the conference, organised by the Handelsblatt newspaper.
