The major German services sector union Verdi is demanding that the government exhaust all options in the takeover battle for Commerzbank by Italian rival UniCredit.
“The government must declare Commerzbank a part of Germany’s critical infrastructure,” said senior Verdi official and Commerzbank supervisory board member Stefan Wittmann.
He said that Commerzbank plays a crucial role in financing Germany’s small and medium-sized companies.
He cast UniCredit’s bid for a tie-up in stark terms, saying the aquisition “would destroy Commerzbank.”
Wittmann spoke at a rally in front of the Commerzbank headquarters in Frankfurt. Verdi said the protest was attended by around 250 employees.
Wittmann pointed to Germany’s HypoVereinsbank (HVB) as an example.
He said that following the takeover of HVB by Unicredit in 2005, a large number of jobs and branches were cut.
Milan-based UniCredit said on Monday it had potentially more than doubled its stake in Commerzbank to 21% by using derivatives. This would make the Italians the largest shareholder ahead of the German government, which holds around 12%. Supervisory authorities still need to approve UniCredit’s increase.
UniCredit simultaneously applied for regulatory permission to raise its stake to up to 29.9%, making an official takeover offer for Germany’s second-largest private bank more likely.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Monday called UniCredit’s manoeuvres “unfriendly attacks” and akin to a “hostile takeover.” He called for more consultations between the sides.
But German Finance Minister Christian Lindner said on Tuesday it was ultimately the responsibility of Commerzbank’s leadership to fend off UniCredit’s advance.
However, he said UniCredit’s behaviour had unsettled many shareholders.
“For this reason, the German government has decided not to sell any further shares for the time being,” said Lindner.
UniCredit was able to tighten its grip after the German government sold 4.5% of its stake – or just over 53 million shares – earlier this month to the Italian lender.
