UniCredit chief executive Andrea Orcel approached German lender Commerzbank’s management on Wednesday inviting the bank to explore merger talks, a source with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

Italy’s UniCredit announced on Wednesday it had bought a 9 per cent stake in Commerzbank.

UniCredit's approach is the strongest indication yet that the Italian lender wants to buy Commerzbank.

A spokesperson for Commerzbank, which said it was holding a board meeting later on Wednesday to discuss UniCredit, neither confirmed not denied an approach had been made.

UniCredit was not immediately available to comment.

Fondazione Cariverona, a major Italian shareholder in UniCredit, welcomed the decision by Italy’s second-largest bank to buy a stake in Commerzbank, its chairman said on Wednesday.

“Fondazione Cariverona sees UniCredit’s decision to buy a significant stake in Commerzbank as highly positive”, Chairman Bruno Giordano said in a statement.

Fondazione Cariverona holds a 1.09 per cent stake in UniCredit.

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