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UniCredit s Stake in Commerzbank Rises to 49.65% After Share Cancellation
At a glance
- Commerzbank retired its remaining repurchased shares, increasing UniCredits stake to 49.65%.
- The rise in UniCredits percentage is the result of share cancellations, not additional purchases by UniCredit.
- Treasury shares are non-voting, so the move does not directly change vote counts at shareholder meetings.
- Around 3.36% of Commerzbank remains as options that UniCredit could convert into shares.
- UniCredit had already achieved de facto majority influence following its takeover offer due to shareholder participation dynamics; the cancellation cements its position on paper.
UniCredit increases influence at Commerzbank after share cancellation
UniCredit has moved a step closer to majority control of Germanys Commerzbank after Commerzbank completed the cancellation of the last shares it had repurchased. A regulatory voting-rights notice published on Thursday shows that the Italian banks potential stake in Commerzbank has risen to 49.65 percent from 47.59 percent previously.
The increase comes not from fresh purchases by UniCredit but from Commerzbanks decision to retire shares it had bought back over recent years as part of a capital-return program. Commerzbank had held around 4.14 percent of its issued capital in treasury stock; canceling those shares reduces the companys outstanding share base and thereby raises UniCredits relative ownership percentage. About 3.36 percent of the holding still consists of options that UniCredit can convert into Commerzbank shares at any time.
On the practical side, the change does not immediately affect voting dynamics at general meetings because treasury shares are not entitled to vote. Moreover, UniCredit would already have had de facto control at the last shareholders meeting after its takeover offer earlier in August, given that not all shareholders participate in vote counts. During that exchange offer, 17.6 percent of Commerzbank shares were tendered a higher-than-expected acceptance rate considering the market price remained above UniCredits offered consideration for much of the acceptance period.
Commerzbank had long signaled an intention to cancel repurchased shares but delayed the move amid the takeover dispute with UniCredit. With the cancellations now complete, UniCredits influence is materially larger on paper, strengthening its position as it advances closer to an outright majority, even if operational control and governance outcomes will still depend on shareholder turnout and any remaining convertible options.
Investors will watch whether UniCredit converts the outstanding options or makes further moves to consolidate control, and how Commerzbanks management and remaining shareholders react as the takeover process continues to play out.
