By Sabela Ojea

Commerzbank said Chief Executive Manfred Knof is stepping down and will be replaced by CFO Bettina Orlopp as it goes through a battle with UniCredit over the future of the bank.

The German bank on Tuesday said that early this month Knof informed Jens Weidmann, chairman of the supervisory board, of his decision not to seek a second term as CEO. He's served as Commerzbank's CEO since 2021.

Commerzbank has begun a search to identify a new finance chief, the bank said. For now, Orlopp will continue serving in the role.

The lender said that it also named Michael Kotzbauer as its deputy CEO. Both Knof and Kotzbauer will receive a five-year contract when entering their new positions, Commerzbank said.

The appointment of a new CEO at Commerzbank comes as Italian lender UniCredit seeks to create a banking champion with nearly $1.5 trillion in assets in a deal that, if successful, could help trigger a long-awaited wave of mergers and acquisitions in European finance.

UniCredit bought 9% of Commerzbank earlier this month. That unexpected move got a hostile reaction from some German officials and union leaders, who said a full acquisition could cut jobs, cede financial clout to Italy and deprive smaller German businesses of funding.

Led by experienced financial dealmaker Andrea Orcel, UniCredit on Monday said that it bought financial contracts that could more than double its stake, to 21%.

Hours later, Berlin hit back. Speaking in New York, German Chancellor Scholz said "unfriendly attacks, hostile takeovers" weren't good for banks.

Write to Sabela Ojea at sabela.ojea@wsj.com; @sabelaojeaguix

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 24, 2024 15:21 ET (19:21 GMT)

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