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Commerzbank is exploring cutting thousands of jobs as it seeks to fend off unwanted advances from Italy’s UniCredit, according to people familiar with the matter.

The plans, which have not yet been formalized, are expected to be unveiled by the workers’ council in the coming weeks, two of the people said. A person familiar with the discussions told the Financial Times that the figure was likely to be “in the low thousands”.

The new chief executive of the German lender, Bettina Orlopp, is due to present a new strategy on February 13 to show that the bank can improve profits and payments to its own shareholders.

UniCredit, led by chief executive Andrea Orcel, established a position in Commerzbank which has the potential to make it the bank’s largest shareholder if it gets regulatory approval.

Orcel did not hide his ambitions for Commerzbank, including a full takeover of the German rival.

Commerzbank investors have generally supported a deal – with the exception of the German government, which still holds a 12 percent stake after selling a 4.5 percent holding to UniCredit last year.

Analysts expect that a tie-up will result in billions of euros in cost savings, as the enlarged bank eliminates duplicate functions.

A major point of resistance from unions and government is the potential for this UniCredit to use the ax in Germany, where it already has a German subsidiary, HypoVereinsbank (HVB).

Commerzbank unions have warned that the takeover of UniCredit could put up to 15,000 jobs on the line – an issue that has taken on an extra dimension of political sensitivity ahead of Germany’s federal election, which is due next month.

The potential for Commerzbank to trigger cuts even if the Italian bank is not taken would mark another chapter in its long-term restructuring.

Commerzbank has already cut thousands of jobs and closed nearly half of its 800 branches since 2021, when former chief executive Manfred Knof began a turnaround effort.

The changes helped boost operating income and triple the bank’s share price over the past three years, and in 2023 it began the first share buyback program in its history.

But UniCredit’s stakebuilding puts more pressure on the German bank to prove it can deliver better profits and value for shareholders as an independent company than as part of the Italian banking empire.

Germany’s second-largest listed bank is struggling to cope with costs that are higher than rivals, including HVB. Orlopp has already raised Commerzbank’s performance targets since UniCredit’s approach in September.

Even some insiders expressed doubts whether Commerzbank could hope to present a standalone case that would give shareholders more value than a merger, given the potential synergies involved in a you deal

A person with knowledge of the matter suggested that Orlopp now plans to accelerate a further change that was previously seen as an option for the future.

Another person familiar with the discussions indicated that job cuts could be encouraged by digitization, especially the adoption of artificial intelligence, that IT functions could be “approached” by other European countries. outside Germany.

Commerzbank said the strategy update, due to be presented alongside full-year results next month, is still being developed, and “we cannot pre-empt future discussions with the management and supervisory boards “.