Berlin Denies Meeting on UniCredit's Commerzbank Merger Plans
BERLIN (Reuters) -Germany's finance ministry on Friday denied a media report that Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil could meet with his Italian counterpart to discuss UniCredit's push for a merger with Commerzbank.
"I can confirm that the minister will be travelling to Rome this weekend, but there is currently no meeting planned or foreseen," a spokesperson said.
Earlier on Friday, an Italian press report cited German financial sources as saying Klingbeil could meet Italian Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti to align their positions on the matter.
UniCredit's takeover ambitions for Commerzbank have stalled due to German opposition to the plans.
CEO Andrea Orcel has said UniCredit will wait until 2026 or 2027 to decide what to do with the 28% stake in Commerzbank the Italian bank has acquired, and that it will depend on the outcome of discussions with all stakeholders.
Orcel has said he was waiting for the new German government to emerge and tackle more urgent matters before seeking to sit down with the new leadership to discuss Commerzbank.
UniCredit sent a letter of congratulations in recent days to Berlin's new government, a person close to the matter said.
(Reporting by Friederike Heine in Berlin and Valentina Za in Milan. Editing by Rachel More and Mark Potter)
