Commerzbank: UniCredit share buyback closes at 17.6 per cent, bringing total stake to 47.6 per cent
It will rise to just shy of 50 per cent. “A step forward – let’s seek dialogue”
(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - UniCredit’s takeover bid for Commerzbank, at the end of the extended acceptance period, closed with acceptance levels amounting to 17.6 per cent of the share capital (18.36 per cent of voting rights, excluding treasury shares). The Italian bank claims this is “a result well above initial expectations”. UniCredit also confirms the 26.77 per cent (27.93 per cent of voting rights) it already held prior to the takeover bid, and the physically settled derivative covering 3.22 per cent (3.36 per cent), whilst it has reduced the potential stake linked to derivatives settled solely in cash to 11.48 per cent (11.98 per cent) from the previous 13.19 per cent. Taking into account “the directly held stake of 26.77 per cent and the financial instruments conferring the right to request physical delivery of a 3.22 per cent stake”, the bank emphasises, “UniCredit’s overall position” amounts to “47.59 per cent of Commerzbank’s share capital”, which “corresponds to 49.65 per cent of Commerzbank’s voting rights, as treasury shares do not confer voting rights”. “The percentage,” the Italian bank adds, “will in any case rise to that level once Commerzbank has cancelled its own shares, a transaction which the bank has undertaken to carry out
“to carry out”. The conclusion of the public offering periods “marks a further step forward in the implementation of UniCredit’s strategic investment in Commerzbank,” concludes the statement from Piazza Gae Aulenti. “ “UniCredit will continue to seek constructive dialogue with all stakeholders, whilst at the same time pursuing the necessary regulatory and authorisation procedures relating to its investment,”
Unicredit’s total potential exposure to Commerz, taking cash derivatives into account, is therefore 59.07 per cent. This figure rises to over 60 per cent in terms of voting rights.
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