(Bloomberg) -- Commerzbank AG named Carsten Schmitt as chief financial officer, filling a crucial role as the lender seeks to win over investors for its defense against a potential takeover by UniCredit SpA.
Schmitt will assume the position “by spring 2025 at the latest,” Commerzbank said in a statement on Thursday. He fills a vacancy left when Bettina Orlopp was promoted to chief executive officer in September, shortly after UniCredit disclosed a large stake in the lender.
As CFO, Schmitt will be key in helping Orlopp accelerate her strategy as she tries to convince shareholders they’re better off if Commerzbank doesn’t get bought by UniCredit. She has already stepped up profitability and payout targets, and said improving capital allocation, which is traditionally a task for CFOs, will be a cornerstone of her plan.
Schmitt joins from Danske Bank A/S, where he was executive vice president of group strategy and M&A. Before that, he spent more than two decades at Commerzbank, most recently as head of group finance.
“I am very much looking forward to working with Carsten again,” Orlopp said in the statement.
Orlopp has promised to provide more details on her vision for Commerzbank at an investor event in February. Her strategy includes curtailing growth in risk-weighted assets further, partly by using more significant risk transfers and potentially backing away from some low-yielding clients, people familiar with the matter have said.
Orlopp, who was CFO until this year, assumed the top executive role after Manfred Knof resigned to speed up the transition to a new leadership. Her appointment came just a few days after UniCredit had unveiled its stake and said it’s considering a full takeover.
Schmitt previously worked at Commerzbank until 2021, the year after Orlopp became CFO. At Danske Bank, he reported directly to CFO Stephan Engels, another Commerzbank veteran. Engels is set to retire from his role at the Danish lender next year.
As Commerzbank CFO, he will likely be involved in talks with UniCredit and its CEO, Andrea Orcel, who is determined to influence Commerzbank’s strategy whether a takeover happens or not.
Analysts at KBW wrote in a note this week that investors would be “better off under the UniCredit umbrella,” highlighting the challenges for the German lender. Commerzbank’s shares could surge as much as 35% if it’s taken over, while they risk declining by a fifth if the Italian rival walks away, they wrote.
(Updates with details on Schmitt from eighth paragraph.)
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