FRANKFURT: The German government will gradually reduce its stake in Commerzbank which it built up when the country’s second-biggest lender ran into trouble during the global financial crisis, authorities said Tuesday.
“The bank’s economic situation has been steadily improving since 2021,” said Eva Grunwald, head of the federal finance agency, in a statement.
The bank was pushed to the brink of bankruptcy during the financial crisis, prompting Berlin to commit huge sums to prop it up in 2008 and 2009.
The state still holds a 16.5% stake in the lender. The finance agency did not give a timetable for the withdrawal.
The bank has gone through several rounds of cost-cutting and restructuring over the years.
But in recent times, like other banks, its results have been boosted by higher eurozone interest rates.