(Bloomberg) -- Deutsche Bank AG Chief Financial Officer James von Moltke on Wednesday effectively ruled out getting involved in the battle for Commerzbank AG, saying Germany’s largest bank remains focused on its own strategy.
“I think that we still have work to do before we’re really positioned to participate in consolidation,” von Moltke said at a conference organized by Bank of America. “And so our focus has been on ourselves, on driving value from our from our businesses.”
The comments are the lates indication that Germany’s largest lender won’t rush to help its smaller cross-town rival, which is having to contend with an unsolicited approach by UniCredit SpA. The German government has said it’s opposed to a takeover and criticized the way the Italian lender built a 21% stake in Commerzbank.
Deutsche Bank has been exploring options as it considers how — or whether — to react to a potential deal that would create a huge competitor in its home market, Bloomberg News has reported. The bank has been analyzing the situation and discussion options, but Deutsche Bank is currently opposed to a takeover of its cross-town rival and may end up up doing nothing, people familiar with the matter have said.
Deutsche Bank Chief Executive Officer Christian Sewing is an outspoken proponent of consolidation in European banking, and last year acquired UK brokerage Numis Corp. in his first bigger deal. But with a stock market value of less than half what UniCredit is worth, it’s been focused on smaller, bolt-on investments for now.
Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank previously held formal takeover talks in early 2019, discussions that were supported by the German government, Bloomberg reported at the time. The negotiations ultimately fell apart as both lenders decided to focus on their respective turnaround plans.
The German market is “very competitive already,” von Moltke said Wednesday. “We feel quite confident in our position in Germany, in how we’re serving our customers, how we’re building our businesses and market share. And to be honest, we stand to benefit a little bit, at least in the near term, from disruption of two of our competitors.”
(Updates with comments on German banking market in last paragraph.)
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