April 20 (Reuters) – UniCredit CEO Andrea Orcel tells analysts in a call:
* COMMERZBANK RELATIVE VALUATION NOT SUPPORTED BY FUNDAMENTALS
* POTENTIAL OFFER REVISION HINGES ON TAKE-UP AND LEVEL OF TRANSPARENCY RFOM COMMERZBANK
* COMMERZBANK’S 2025 RESULTS HAVE BEEN PROPPED UP BY TEMPORARY TAILWINDS AND FINANCIAL ENGINEERING
* COMMERZBANK’S MOMENTUM SIMPLY OFFERS MORE OF THE SAME
* MORE OF THE SAME MEANS THAT FURTHER RESTRUCTURING AT COMMERZBANK IS INEVITABLE
* PROPOSING TO CHANGE THE STORY AT COMMERZBANK WITH SAME APPROACH ROLLED OUT AT UNICREDIT
* APPROACH PROPOSED FOR COMMERZBANK IS ABOUT RESTORING DISCIPLINE BY BALANCING THE RIGHT GROWTH WITH INVESTMENT-LED EFFICIENCY
* UNLOCKED APPROACH PROPOSED FOR COMMERZBANK REQUIRES ‘HARD WORK, DETERMINATION AND COMMITMENT’
* CHOICE IS SIMPLE FOR COMMERZBANK CONTINUE UNDER CURRENT PLAN OF CONSISTENT UNDERPERFORMANCE OR CHANGE THE STORY
* IN 2025 COMMERZBANK CONTINUED TO UNDERPERFORM UNICREDIT AND SECTOR UNDER ALL RELEVANT KPI
* WHILE COMMERZBANK NET PROFIT HEADLINE IN 2025 MAY LOOK ACCEPTABLE BUT UNDERLYING 2021-2024 PATTERN REPEATED IN 2025
* COMMERZBANK’S MOMENTUM COURSE IMPLIES CONTINUED UNDERPERFORMANCE INTO 2028
* HALF OF MOMENTUM-BASED CONSENSUS REVENUE GROWTH AT COMMERZBANK OUT TO 2028 BASED ON FINANCIAL TAILWINDS AND RATES
* COMMERZBANK RISKS BECOMING INCREASINGLY UNFIT FOR A BANKING ENVIRONMENT WHICH IS CHANGING RAPIDLY
* UP UNTIL UNICREDIT DISCLOSED ITS INVESTMENT, COMMERZBANK TRADED AT 22% DISCOUNT TO THE SECTOR
* PROPOSED COMMERZBANK UNLOCKED BEING PROPOSED WOULD ALIGN COMMERZBANK STANDALONE TO SUPERIOR PERFORMANCE OF HVB
* UNICREDIT CEO: SAVINGS WOULD COME IN PART FROM REDUCING ‘RAMPANT’ BUREACRACY AT COMMERZBANK
* UNICREDIT CEO: APPROXIMATELY 60% OF UNLOCKED COST SAVINGS WOULD COME FROM NON-HR AND NON-CORE ACTIVITIES IN THE INTERNATIONAL NETWORK, NOT IN GERMANY
* REMAINING 40% OF COST CUTS OF COMMERZBANK UNLOCKED PLAN WOULD COME MAINLY FROM SENIOR OVERHEAD, BUREAUCRACY REDUCTION
* COMMERZBANK-UNICREDIT COMBINATION WOULD ADD FURTHER 1.1 BILLION EURO IN 2030 IN PRE-TAX VALUE
* CAN CONSIDER OFFER REVISION FOLLOWING SERIOUS DETAILED DISCUSSIONS WITH COMMERZBANK WHICH HAVEN’T HAPPENED
* BID INCLUDES ‘MEANINGFUL’ PREMIUM EMBEDDED IN COMMERZBANK’S INCREASED VALUATION DRIVEN BY UNICREDIT’S INVESTMENT Further company coverage: (Reporting by Milan Newsroom)
