Commerzbank Tender Rate Jumps to 7.6% as UniCredit’s Hostile Bid Grinds Toward a June Deadline
03.06.2026 - 02:42:43 | boerse-global.de
UniCredit’s quest to seize control of Commerzbank has cleared a regulatory hurdle, but the degree of shareholder support for the voluntary swap offer is still far from decisive. The Italian lender reported on Tuesday that 7.6% of Commerzbank’s share capital had been tendered as of 2 June, a sharp jump from just 1.1% a week earlier. Combined with its existing 26.77% stake, UniCredit now holds a direct interest of 34.35% — comfortably above the 30% threshold that would otherwise trigger a mandatory bid for all outstanding shares at a premium.
Yet the offer itself remains unattractive to many holders. UniCredit is proposing 0.485 of its own shares for each Commerzbank share, a ratio that values the German bank at roughly €34.35 per share based on a three-month average price. That is well below the current market price. Commerzbank’s stock closed at €37.24 on Tuesday, just 1.35% shy of its 52-week high of €37.75, and nearly 10% above its 200-day moving average. The year-to-date gain stands at almost 39%, underscoring the gulf between what the market thinks the company is worth and what UniCredit is offering.
Commerzbank’s management is betting that its own revival story will keep shareholders from biting. In May, the board raised its net profit target for 2026 to at least €3.4 billion and laid out a 2030 ambition of €5.9 billion in net profit alongside a return on equity of roughly 21%. Both the executive board and the supervisory board have rejected UniCredit’s bid, arguing it offers no adequate premium and lacks a credible integration plan. The offer’s implied value on 15 May, when the board issued its formal opposition, stood at €34.56, while the stock closed that day at €36.48.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Commerzbank?
UniCredit has until midnight Frankfurt time on 16 June 2026 to collect more tenders, with an extended period likely running to 3 July. During the acceptance window, the bank must report weekly — and daily in the final week — on the rate of tenders. Should the pace accelerate further, pressure on Commerzbank’s leadership could mount. For now, the relatively low participation from free float investors bolsters management’s argument that the offer undervalues the company.
Political resistance remains a complicating factor. The German government, which still holds a stake from the 2008 bailout, has voiced its opposition to a foreign takeover. But its ability to block UniCredit’s advance is limited under current securities law. The ball is now squarely in the court of Commerzbank’s remaining public shareholders, and their verdict will be known in less than two weeks.
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