UCG Unicredit Spa

   By Nathan Allen 
 

Shares in Commerzbank AG (CBK.XE) rose Thursday morning after the Financial Times reported that Italy's UniCredit SpA (UCG.MI) is preparing to launch a bid for the German lender if talks with Deutsche Bank AG (DBK.XE) fall through.

According to the FT, UniCredit doesn't plan to barge in while talks are taking place with Deutsche Bank, but it is readying a bid as the negotiations seem to have encountered several obstacles.

Shortly after the market open Commerzbank traded 3.3% higher at 7.45 euros ($8.37), while Deutsche Bank was down 0.7%, and UniCredit declined 1.3%.

"This is the sort of deal that would make more sense than trying to merge two struggling German banks, however it is still likely to face a significant number of obstacles," Michael Hewson of CMC Markets said.

Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank announced in March that they were formally discussing a merger, following years of speculation and abortive informal talks. But the deal faces resistance from unions, shareholders and analysts, who don't see a tie-up as the right way to turn the struggling lenders' fortunes around.

A potential deal between Commerzbank and UniCredit has been the subject of speculation for some years. Analysts have in the past suggested UniCredit could be a more logical buyer than Deutsche Bank, as its HypoVereinsbank subsidiary could be complementary to Commerzbank's portfolio.

Write to Nathan Allen at nathan.allen@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 04, 2019 03:38 ET (07:38 GMT)

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