Unicredit: German antitrust, inexperienced mild in acquisition 29.99% of Commerzbank | EUROtoday

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The German Federal Antitrust Office (Bundeskartellamt-Bfk) licensed the acquisition of a share of Commerzbank by Unicredit, from the perspective of the elements of the regulation regulation. The German antitrust communicated it in a notice. «The solely acquisition of notified minority will strengthen Unicredit’s market place within the personal and company banking sector in Germany. We subsequently fastidiously examined the notably monetary companies sectors. Other vital rivals are lively in all sectors, which is why the operation has needed to be accredited, “said Andreas Mundt, president of the BFK.

«The investigations focused on regional activities with private and commercial customers. Both for the parts of the merger and for their main competitors – including savings boxes, cooperative banks and other private banks – branches and their geographical coverage throughout Germany have been examined. Even in areas where there is a greater concentration, no problems related to merger have been identified as regards activities with private and commercial customers with a turnover of up to around 10 million euros, thanks to the diversified structure of suppliers “, reads the notice. “There were no reliable clues of a significant impediment to the actual competition linked to the merger, the threshold of intervention for the ban on a merger. It is true that Commerzbank holds in some cases a position of strength or leadership in the national markets of trade financing services, such as documentary credits, collections and banking guarantees, in which Unicredit also operates. However, several competitors also have a significant market position or the potential to expand their market position, which means that after the merger, relevant alternatives will remain for customers, “explains the German antitrust.