Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti
on Monday said the safest way to lose a war is engaging on two
fronts, quoting Prussian general and author Carl von Clausewitz
and wondering whether the rule would apply to the case of
Italian lender UniCredit which announced a surprise all-share
bid for domestic rival Banco BPM earlier in the day.
"Quoting von Clausewitz, the safest way to lose a war is
engaging on two fronts, although maybe the rule won't be true
this time", the minister said.
Italy's lender on Monday launched a 10 billion euro bid for
domestic rival Banco BPM, which CEO Andrea Orcel said would take
precedence over a potential move on Germany's Commerzbank .
The offer for Banco BPM comes during an impasse in UniCredit's
efforts to buy its German rival - an acquisition opposed by the
government in Berlin.
In September, UniCredit increased its stake in Commerzbank to
21% and filed a request to increase the holding to up to 29.9%.
Earlier that month, the Italian lender had acquired a 9% stake
in Commerzbank, including half from the German government.
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