The British investment bank Barclays has managed to take control of 16 percent of the shares of Commerzbank, which in parallel is being the subject of a large-scale operation by the large Italian bank Unicredit, with the aim of taking control of the German entity. Barclays directly owns 7.72% of Commerzbank shares and has obtained access to another additional 8.33 percent through derivatives, as made public in a mandatory announcement, because it exceeds 10 percent of the total shares.
In the statement, Barclays stated that does not pursue any strategic objective with Commerzbank. Rather, it was mainly about the purchase of derivatives. The share packages only served to hedge these positions, which include call and put options and contracts for differences (CFDs). Internal sources suggest, however, that Barclays is one of the banks that is supporting Unicredit in creating the Commerzbank portfolio.
It is therefore unclear what proportion of Barclays’ position is related to Unicredit’s entry. The Italians announced in December that they controlled about 28 percent of the shares in Commerzbank, of which they directly owned about 9.5 percent. Unicredit gained access to an additional 18.5 percent through derivatives. It was recently announced that the American bank Citianother of the banks working for Unicredit, has access to 5.1 percent of Commerzbank, mainly through derivatives.
Commerzbank, for its part, continues to rule out a friendly merger with Unicredit. This same week, the president of its board of directors, Jens Weidmann, has assured that There is little chance that the merger intended by the Italian bank UniCredit will end up being friendlyin an interview with the newspaper Handelsblatt. “As in any relationship: if the start is unsuccessful, it will be difficult,” he said, “in mergers it is important that managers first talk to each other in a spirit of trust and develop a common understanding. UniCredit has decided otherwise and has surprised us with its entry. “That’s not the way to go.”
The German Government continues to defend that it would be positive for two large independent banks to remain in the country, also referring to Deutsche Bank, and that the attractiveness of Frankfurt as a financial center will be “probably less” if the takeover bid is completed, which would be detrimental. also to SMEs. But waiting for early elections and what is expected to be a long negotiation to form a government, the German government lacks great capacity for maneuver.
As a consequence of international interest, yesterday Commerzbank shares They exceeded the horizontal resistance located at 16.85 euros at the close. After several all-time highs in the fall of last year, they are reaching levels not seen since 2011. Profitability has constantly improved in recent quarters and the next mark to beat is 20.00 euros. In the short term, the quarterly figures from February 13 could provide further impetus. And while the Unicredit attack looms in the markets, the management of Commerzbank has made the decision to move.
The second German bank hopes to become the new tenant of Frankfurt Central Business Tower205 meters high, in the banking district, more than 70,000 square meters of rental space whose first stone was laid last September and which hopes to have completed the works by 2028.
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