By Tom Sims and Christian Kraemer
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Germany will not sell any more shares in Commerzbank for the time being and the bank’s strategy is “geared towards independence,” the country’s Finance Agency said on Friday.
The statement comes days after Italian bank UniCredit announced it had bought a 9% stake in Commerzbank – from the German government as well as on the open market – and its chief executive said he wanted to explore a merger.
The German government, which still owns 12% of Commerzbank, would play a key role in whether any deal can take place.
However, over the past week labour unions and Commerzbank management have called on the government to hold off on any further share sales.
The Finance Agency, which is part of the German finance ministry and manages government holdings, said that at a meeting on Friday it had decided it “will not, until further notice, sell any additional shares”.
Commerzbank and UniCredit didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
“Commerzbank is a stable and profitable institute. The bank’s strategy is geared towards independence. The Federal government will accompany this until further notice by maintaining its shareholding,” the agency said.
This means the government’s plan is to now hold its Commerzbank shares beyond the 90-day lockup agreed at the time of the share sale last week, according to a person familiar with the discussions.
(Additional reporting by Valentina Za; Editing by Maria Martinez and Susan Fenton)
