On Wednesday UniCredit announced that it has increased its stake in Commerzbank to 20% following the exercise of derivative instruments relating to approximately 10% of the German bank's shares.

In a press release, the Italian financial services giant said that it had obtained all the necessary legal and regulatory approvals for the transaction, including from the European Central Bank, the German antitrust authority and the US Federal Reserve, which it believes validates the compliance of its approach.

UniCredit said it plans to convert the remaining 9% of its theoretical stake into capital through the exercise of financial instruments in the near future, which would bring its voting rights to around 29%.

The Milan-based group would thus become the German institution's main reference shareholder.

This move is part of UniCredit's recently implemented merger and acquisition (M&A) strategy, which has been encouraged by more obvious support from political authorities.

This increase in capital comes at a time when Brussels is reportedly preparing to oppose the conditions set by the Italian government for the public offer launched on Banco BPM.

On the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, Commerzbank shares rose more than 2% following the announcement, while UniCredit shares were up around 1.3% in Milan.


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