Finance
UniCredit CEO Says Positive Discussions May Lead to Improved Terms for Commerzbank Bid
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 18, 2026
2 min readLast updated: March 18, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
Company
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 18, 2026
2 min readLast updated: March 18, 2026
UniCredit CEO Andrea Orcel said on March 18 there’s a “remote” chance the bank may improve its bid terms for Commerzbank depending on how talks progress. The move aims to break a stalemate following UniCredit’s initial stake build-up since September 2024.
MILAN, March 18 (Reuters) - UniCredit <CRDI.MI> Chief Executive Andrea Orcel said on Wednesday he did not rule out improving the terms of the bank's bid for Commerzbank if merger discussions produced a positive outcome, adding that such a scenario was very remote.
UniCredit on Monday launched a takeover bid for Commerzbank, saying it did not want to gain control of the rival but to trigger tie-up discussions.
Speaking at a Morgan Stanley conference in London, Orcel said the chief aim of the bid was to break the paralysis that ensued after UniCredit's initial acquisition of a stake in the rival in September 2024 sparked a backlash in Germany.
"For us the main purpose of this offer is to break the stalemate. The situation in which we have all been in the last 18 months or thereabout is suboptimal for everybody," Orcel said.
UniCredit expects the offer - which offers a narrow 4% premium - to only slightly lift its stake in Commerzbank, which currently stands at just below 30% when including a portion held through derivative contracts.
Orcel said the terms of the bid could be improved if a dialogue led to "an outcome that all stakeholders feel comfortable with" and UniCredit's concerns "in terms of areas where we would need to prepare for plugging in gaps" were addressed.
"On that basis, could we review the terms of the offer, which then would become something completely different? ... Of course we can," he said.
"At the moment... this is not a scenario that we are considering," he added.
(Reporting by Valentina Za, editing by Gavin Jones)
Andrea Orcel said there was a remote possibility that UniCredit could improve the terms of its bid for Commerzbank depending on discussions' outcomes.
UniCredit aimed to trigger tie-up discussions, not to gain control, and break the stalemate following its initial stake acquisition.
UniCredit acquired its initial stake in Commerzbank in September 2024.
Andrea Orcel discussed the Commerzbank bid at a Morgan Stanley conference in London.
The chief aim is to break the stalemate and prompt discussions regarding a tie-up between the two banks.
Explore more articles in the Finance category
