27 Friday the chances of a rapid OPA is being reduced

A year ago, the German banking sector shaking to the woes of some institutions: IKB and SachsenLB came to be saved from emergency; WestLB began to reveal the extent of its losses; Deutsche Bank and Dresdner Bank would announce that their investment banks would suffer from the crisis, with a strong retail bank can balance their result. It was the evil necessary to finally move to German consolidation. Since Friday, private country banks found an end to the fragmentation of the market. Deutsche Bank has formalized its entry to the capital of Postbank, two weeks after the alliance between Dresdner Bank and Commerzbank.

More specifically, the Bank of Josef Ackermann will take a 29.75 stake in the German postal Bank. It will address 57,25 per title in any cash, 25 more than the last closing price. This represents a total amount of EUR 2.79 billion, that it will finance in part by a capital increase of EUR 2 billion. Deutsche Post has secured an option to 55 euros per share on 18 additional it may exercise within 12 to 36 months after the operation. What allow to rise gradually to the capital, while rejecting the other contenders. Santander including came to a tentative offer on all of the titles, which would certainly delighted the shareholders of the Postal Bank. The Postbank action lost 9.27 Friday, the chances of a rapid OPA is being reduced.

Deutsche Bank to avoid a costly operation in full financial turbulence. It is not required to launch an offer throughout the capital as long as it does not exceed 30. Josef Ackermann, this operation is "a sine qua non-to allow us to remain number one in our market domestic". The pressure was getting since the alliance between Dresdner Bank and Commerzbank.

"A somewhat malignant solution."

Deutsche Bank had bought from small institutions in recent years (NorisBank, Berliner Bank), but had been blowing summer Citibank, the German subsidiary of the Citi American. 7.3 Billion euros in impairment losses recorded in the Investment Bank made a refocusing towards the imperative "stable" activities.

For redemption, "there will be no integration", assured Joseph Ackermann for Postbank "must keep her identity". Its approximately 21,000 jobs and its subsidiaries would be thus preserved. However, the two banks will cooperate in the sale of products, such as DWS funds or those of real estate financing in Postbank. "The minority participation was a somewhat malignant solution, said Andreas Weese, analyst at UniCredit to the Bloomberg Agency, Deutsche Bank has ensured all options without extreme dilution through large capital-related measures".

Pressure on margins

Experts from JP Morgan however regret this movement deemed primarily defensive and no real strategic logic. As Deutsche Bank gave up buy Postbank in 2004 at a lower price of action twice... His action slipped 1.84 Friday.

Social democratic Finance Minister Peer Steinbrück, hailed the operation "It is a good thing, as deemed necessary in the German banking sector consolidation" while denying direct intervention of Berlin.

Is - this enough to address the high pressure on margins in retail banking "The merger between Dresdner Bank and Commerzbank is a big step forward, the Deutsche Bank-Postbank transaction a satisfactory developments even if is only a minority stake, said Andrea von Schnurbein, analyst at Fitch. But the difficulties associated with the dominance of the unions of cooperative groups will remain as long as there will be no political will for change. "At the regional level, in particular, where discussions on the future of WestLB and BayernLB trample.