EXCLUSIVE-German finance minister invites UniCredit's CEO to meeting, government sources say

German Finance Minister ​Lars Klingbeil plans to meet UniCredit CEO Andrea Orcel, government ‌sources ​told Reuters, in a first sign that Berlin is willing to engage directly with the Italian bank over its Commerzbank takeover attempt. Klingbeil has invited Orcel to a meeting at the finance ministry in Berlin on September ‌14, the sources said on Wednesday.

Orcel has accepted the invitation, a person with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. Commerzbank and the Italian economy ministry representatives declined to comment.

The minister will outline Berlin's position in talks with Orcel and emphasize Commerzbank's role in financing the German economy and its importance to Frankfurt as a ‌financial centre, according to the sources, who declined to be named because the plans were not public yet. "This complements the talks between the two ‌banks, which remain responsible for discussing the way forward directly," one of the people said.

The German government previously insisted that UniCredit and Commerzbank hold direct talks before it engaged with the Italian lender. Executives of both banks held several rounds of talks earlier this year, but they failed to produce an agreement, with Commerzbank long resisting UniCredit's overtures.

However, in a significant shift of tone, ⁠Commerzbank Chief Executive ​Bettina Orlopp said earlier this month ⁠that a tie-up with UniCredit could create value for both sides and that she was optimistic both sides could find common ground. Commerzbank has stressed that it wanted to preserve its international network ⁠and retain its focus on financing of Germany's medium-sized, "Mittelstand" companies.

UniCredit invested in Commerzbank in September 2024, starting a nearly two-year tug-of-war between Italy's and Germany's No. 2 banks. It ​has served as a test of Europe's appetite for cross-border deals, which policymakers say the sector needs to compete with bigger U.S. rivals. Commerzbank's ⁠resistance to a UniCredit takeover weakened after the Italian lender in July reached a stake of up to 49.65%, which is sufficient to determine shareholder resolutions. The German government, which still holds just ⁠over ​12% in the Frankfurt-based bank following its rescue during the global financial crisis, had long opposed a takeover. Commerzbank's supervisory board chair, Jens Weidmann, said on Sunday Berlin should retain its Commerzbank stake for now. Orcel's approach had been described by the German government as hostile and aggressive. The UniCredit CEO, ⁠for his part, had pushed for direct talks with the German government and employee representatives.

While the offer period has ended, UniCredit still needs regulatory approvals to ⁠take possession of the tendered shares. Approval ⁠from the European Central Bank, which has long backed cross-border mergers to strengthen European Union integration, would remove the main regulatory hurdle and the ECB is leaning towards approving the takeover, according to an internal document seen by Reuters.