Exclusive-German minister is set to meet UniCredit's CEO in first direct Commerzbank talks

By Christian Kraemer

BERLIN, Aug 26 (Reuters) - German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil plans to meet UniCredit CEO Andrea Orcel, sources told Reuters, the clearest sign yet that Berlin will engage directly with the Italian bank over its Commerzbank takeover attempt.

The German government, which holds just over 12% in the Frankfurt-based bank following its financial crisis-era rescue, has resisted Orcel's two-year pursuit to take over Commerzbank and create a lender with more than €1.3 trillion ($1.5 trillion) in assets.

Orcel has accepted an invitation to meet at the finance ministry in Berlin, another source said on Wednesday.

UniCredit shares rose 2% on Wednesday, to the highest since October 2009. Commerzbank stock, which has tripled since UniCredit first bought shares in September 2024, gained 2.8%.

The minister, who aims for talks on September 14, will outline Berlin's position to Orcel. He will also underline Commerzbank's importance in financing the German economy and to Frankfurt as a financial centre, according to the sources. They declined to be named because the plans are not public.

Commerzbank and the Italian economy ministry representatives declined to comment on the planned talks.

La Repubblica reported on Tuesday that Orcel may meet with Klingbeil in September, without giving further details.

BERLIN'S TAKEOVER STANCE HAS BEEN AT ODDS WITH ECB

Berlin has cited Orcel's hostile and aggressive approach and the bank's low offer price. It also wants to maintain Commerzbank's national headquarters in Frankfurt.

Its position has been at odds with the region's banking watchdog, the European Central Bank, which has long backed cross-border mergers to strengthen integration and allow the sector to compete with bigger U.S. rivals.

Executives of Italy's and Germany's No. 2 banks held several rounds of talks earlier this year without producing an agreement.

Germany's resistance to a takeover weakened after the Italian lender in July reached a stake of just shy of 50%, which is sufficient to sway shareholder resolutions, including naming board members.

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.

The UniCredit CEO, for his part, had pushed for direct talks with the German government and also employee representatives.

One of the people said the minister's discussions with Orcel would complement the talks between the two banks, which remained responsible for "discussing the way forward directly".

UniCredit can reassure Germany on the future of jobs at Commerzbank, but discussions on where to base the bank's German operations may take longer, said another person.

UniCredit has said that it plans to keep its Italian base and the Italy's economy minister has said it would not back a move to Germany.

Commerzbank for its part has said it wants to preserve its international network and retain its focus on financing of Germany's medium-sized, "Mittelstand" companies.

Commerzbank's supervisory board chair, Jens Weidmann, said on Sunday Berlin should retain its Commerzbank stake for now.

Approval from the ECB would remove the main regulatory hurdle and the ECB is leaning towards approving the takeover, according to an internal document seen by Reuters.

($1 = 0.8587 euros)

(Reporting by Christian Kraemer, writing by Maria Martinez, additional reporting by Tom Sims, John O'Donnell and Giulio Piovaccari, editing by Kirsti Knolle, Tomasz Janowski and Elisa Martinuzzi.)