Commerzbank Looks to Free Up Capital to Fend Off UniCredit
- Bettina Orlopp is said to see room to release more capital
- Lender seeks to persuade investors it has a standalone future
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Commerzbank AG Chief Executive Officer Bettina Orlopp is seeking to unlock more capital to pay out or invest, as she makes the case for an independent bank in the face of a potential takeover by rival UniCredit SpA.
Orlopp is working on a plan to keep the expected growth in risk-weighted assets several billion euros below a goal presented just a little over a month ago, people familiar with the matter said. She wants to achieve that partly by using more significant risk transfers and potentially backing away from some low-yielding clients, the people said, asking not to be named discussing the internal deliberations.