UniCredit CEO Vows to Be More Proactive on Commerzbank After Offer

By Adria Calatayud

UniCredit Chief Executive Andrea Orcel said the Italian bank is ready to be more proactive toward Commerzbank going forward, leaving the door open to revising the terms of its takeover offer if the banks can agree on a common plan.

Earlier this week, UniCredit outlined plans to launch a takeover offer--expected to value Commerzbank as a whole at 34.7 billion euros ($40.05 billion)--aimed at breaking an impasse between the two groups since UniCredit became a shareholder in its German rival in 2024.

Commerzbank said it wasn't consulted on the offer and reiterated its conviction in its standalone prospects. CEO Bettina Orlopp later said she was surprised by the "low price" of the offer.

Speaking at a Morgan Stanley conference in London on Wednesday, Orcel said the main goal of the offer was to break a stalemate that plagued both banks over the past 18 months by engaging with Commerzbank's top executives, labor representatives, the German government, shareholders and clients.

"The objective is to open a window of 12 weeks of engagement and dialogue and put all our cards on the table and try to then come out of that engagement with a common vision, a common strategy, a common plan that we can all back, or at minimum reduce the level of misunderstanding and the level of angst that everybody has by misinterpreting each other," Orcel said. "That is the win-win."

Commerzbank shares were up 4.5% in European midday trading, while UniCredit's were up 1.25%

Orcel outlined three possible outcomes of the offer. Under the first one, UniCredit would end up with an unchanged Commerzbank stake--slightly under 30%--or above that level but without reaching control, he said. Orcel said the only change in that scenario would be UniCredit becoming more proactive on sharing its views on the path forward for the German bank.

Under the two other that UniCredit sees as less likely, it would acquire control of Commerzbank or even get close to a point where it could merge with the German bank, Orcel added.

Orcel said UniCredit isn't considering an offer with a premium at this point, but that it could revise its plans depending on whether it engages with Commerzbank, and what that process leads to.

While the settlement of the offer isn't due to be completed until next year, Orcel said UniCredit expects to know the outcome in June.

Write to Adria Calatayud at adria.calatayud@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 18, 2026 08:29 ET (12:29 GMT)