Germany does not expect UniCredit to go for full Commerzbank bid at present

ROME (Reuters) -Germany does not expect Italy's UniCredit to launch a full bid for German rival Commerzbank at present, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Saturday.

UniCredit disclosed last year that it had built a web of financial transactions through derivatives to secure a Commerzbank stake of around 28%, and in March received European Central Bank approval to get to 29.9%.

It has said the stake is a financial investment and pushed back any decision on a full takeover, which it says it would be the best outcome, to 2026-2027.

Under German rules crossing the 30% threshold triggers a buyout offer.

"The share in Commerzbank is below that which would require a takeover offer. It is not foreseeable that this level will be reached or crossed," Merz told a news conference in Rome after meeting Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

Merz said that he did not discuss Commerzbank with Meloni because there was no reason to.

"We would discuss any further matters if the topic should come to be seen in a different light," he said.

Merz has previously spoken out against a potential takeover attempt which he has said would be devastating for Germany.

The German finance ministry on Friday denied a media report that Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil might meet his Italian counterpart to discuss UniCredit's push for a merger.

(Reporting by Sara Rossi and Victoria Waldersee, editing Crispian Balmer)