Germany’s major service sector union Verdi is demanding that the government use all options in the takeover battle for Commerzbank by Italian rival UniCredit.
“The government must declare Commerzbank part of Germany’s critical infrastructure,” said Stefan Wittmann, a senior Verdi official and member of Commerzbank’s supervisory board.
He said Commerzbank plays a crucial role in financing German small and medium-sized enterprises.
He summarised UniCredit’s takeover bid in stark terms, saying the takeover would “destroy Commerzbank”.
Wittmann was speaking at a rally outside Commerzbank’s headquarters in Frankfurt. Verdi said the protest was attended by about 250 employees.
Wittmann cited the German HypoVereinsbank (HVB) as an example.
He said that after the takeover of HVB by Unicredit in 2005, a large number of jobs and branches were cut.
Milan-based UniCredit said Monday it had potentially more than doubled its stake in Commerzbank to 21% using derivatives. This would make the Italians the largest shareholder ahead of the German government, which owns about 12%. Regulators must still approve UniCredit’s increase.
At the same time, UniCredit filed a request with the regulator to increase its stake to 29.9%, making an official takeover bid for Germany’s second-largest private bank more likely.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Monday called UniCredit’s moves “unfriendly attacks” and akin to a “hostile takeover.” He called for more dialogue between the parties.
But German Finance Minister Christian Lindner said on Tuesday that it was ultimately the responsibility of Commerzbank’s management to stave off UniCredit’s rise.
However, he said UniCredit’s behaviour had left many shareholders worried.
“For this reason, the German government has decided not to sell any more shares for the time being,” Lindner said.
UniCredit was able to tighten its grip on the market after the German government sold 4.5% of its stake – just over 53 million shares – to the Italian lender earlier this month.
