UniCredit closes in on Commerzbank with nearly 50% stake

European banking just got a lot more Italian. UniCredit has built an economic stake of 47.6% in Commerzbank, translating to roughly 49.65% of the voting rights, a threshold that gives the Milan-based lender effective control over one of Germany’s most storied financial institutions without technically crossing the 50% majority line. How UniCredit got here The campaign started in September 2024, when UniCredit began accumulating Commerzbank shares. By early 2026, UniCredit had launched a formal voluntary public takeover offer. The acceptance period closed on July 8, 2026, with commitments for an additional 17.6% of shares coming in during that final stretch, pushing the total economic stake to 47.6%. The German government had held a substantial stake in Commerzbank following the bank’s post-2008 bailout. Berlin has been steadily reducing that position over the past several years, and those sales created the opening UniCredit needed to accumulate shares. That said, the German government’s attitude toward this deal has ranged from skeptical to openly hostile at various points. The governance battle brewing for 2027 Commerzbank’s leadership has publicly committed to its independent “Mo...