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UniCredit Seeks to Overturn Italy’s BPM Conditions as It Boosts Commerzbank Stake to 20%

The bank is due in an Italian court to appeal national security terms on its €17 billion BPM bid, with EU regulators ready to order Rome to drop the measures.

A woman talks on a mobile phone as she walks past a Banca Popolare di Milano (BPM) branch in Rome, Italy, December 17, 2024. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane/File Photo
A person uses an ATM at a UniCredit bank branch in Rome, Italy, November 25, 2024. REUTERS/Yara Nardi/File Photo
UniCredit CEO Andrea Orcel leaves after attending the presentation of the Bank of Italy's annual report, in Rome, Italy May 30, 2025. REUTERS/Remo Casilli/File Photo
The logo of  Commerzbank is pictured at the company's headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany, February 13, 2025. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach/File Photo

Overview

  • UniCredit’s appeal targets April-imposed conditions that require it to exit Russia within nine months and maintain BPM’s loan-to-deposit ratio for five years.
  • Brussels is set to assert exclusive EU merger authority and may launch infringement proceedings if Italy refuses to withdraw the contested terms.
  • On Tuesday, UniCredit converted roughly 10 percent of its synthetic Commerzbank holding into shares, lifting its direct voting stake to about 20 percent.
  • The lender plans to convert its remaining 9 percent derivatives position into shares in due course, which would bring its voting stake to around 29 percent.
  • Commerzbank’s management and the German government, which holds 12.1 percent of the bank, have rejected UniCredit’s unsolicited moves and reaffirmed their commitment to independence.