Various: Unicredit boss of Commerzbank-purchase: “We have a plan”

Andrea Orcel presents himself confidently: In the heart of Frankfurt, the Unicredit boss explains his plans for a takeover of Commerzbank – almost to the day after the Greater Italian Bank started with Germany’s second largest listed money. And just 24 hours after Commerzbank boss Bettina Orlopp had defended the independence of her house on the same stage.

“We have a plan,” says Orcel at the “Handelsblatt-Banken-summit”. Initially, the Unicredit will increase its share of stocks at Commerzbank from currently a good 26 percent: “We will be around 30 percent towards the end of the year.” If the 30 percent mark is exceeded, the UniCredit would be obliged to submit a takeover offer to the other Commerzbank shareholders.

Orcel concretized takeover plan

Orcel leaves open whether and when it happens. However, the manager already has concrete ideas about how it could go on for Commerzbank after a takeover:

The branch network: In Germany there is a great concern that the already thinned -out network of Commerzbank would continue to be put together from the UniCredit. Orcel says: “For us it is about more income. We will not touch the branch network, we will invest in the network.”

Jobs: In the event of a takeover, there is a “clear cut” at Commerzbank? “I think that a large number of jobs would be lost at the headquarters, but far less than was being said,” says the UniCredit boss. And he is convinced with a view to Commerzbank: “In five or seven years, they would probably delete more jobs than with us with consolidation because they have to.” Commerzbank itself wants to delete around 3,900 full -time positions by the end of 2027, 3,300 of them in Germany. Because there are also places at the Polish daughter Mbank and at low -wage locations in Asia, the staff in the world should remain largely constant at 36,700 full -time forces worldwide.

Central: Milan, Munich or Frankfurt – Where could the Commerzbank headquarters be after a takeover? “We would discuss this with the government,” says Orcel. Unicredit may have a preference, but the government will explain which place it prefers.

Nothing works against politics

In any case, he has learned in the past few months that he had to involve politics more. According to the latest information, the German state, which Commerzbank had retained from collapse in the 2008/2009 financial crisis with tax billions, has more than 12 percent of the shares and has so far excluded the sale of further Commerzbank shares. “We are here and are happy about every constructive dialogue with everyone who wants it,” says Orcel.

Last September, the UniCredit used the part of the state to buy the part of the state in order to shop at Commerzbank on a large scale – and thus surprise federal politics as well as the Frankfurt financial center.

Everyone wants stronger banks – but nobody wants to put back

Management and works council of Commerzbank reject orceles as well as the federal government as “hostile” and “unfriendly”. But not the fan orcel. The UniCredit, which already has a pillar in the German market with HypoVereinsbank (HVB), sees opportunities in the business with private and medium-sized customers.

Everyone was talking about Europe needed stronger banks, Orcel complains. But when it becomes concrete, everyone says: “We really need stronger banks, we really need consolidation – but not here.”

Commerzbank boss Orlopp promises shareholders for the next few years increasing profits and higher dividends. “Cross -border integrations only make sense if I can really pull the advantages out of it,” she says about mergers. “Size alone is not the lever. It is important to be quick to be innovative.”

Does Commerzbank have to save even more?

According to Orcel, the efforts of Commerzbank to reduce the costs of reducing more expensive positions: “You must not become weaker because nobody as a bank in Germany can survive with an expense-income ratio of 57 percent if competitors are under 40.” Commerzbank is aiming to only turn up 57 cents for every euro yield this year. For comparison: the Unicredit did not even need 37 cents in the first half of the year.

The 62-year-old replies that he does not bother him in view of the resistance in Germany in his plans for Commerzbank’s takeover: When asked how long he wants to remain the UNICREDIT head: “As long as the shareholders want me, I will stay.”