Frankfurt - Amid pressures for another round of German bank consolidation, giant insurer Allianz SE is considering orchestrating a three-way merger between its banking offshoot Dresdner Bank, Commerzbank AG and Deutsche Postbank AG, a report said Friday. The daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung said that the discussions over forging a new German banking powerhouse are still at an early stage and the talks have not moved into formal negotiations. The newspaper did not identify its sources.
The report comes in the wake of a round of fresh speculation about the future of Frankfurt-based Dresdner, which Allianz acquired seven years ago as part of efforts by the insurer to cash in on the then German government's plans to promote private pension schemes.
The Financial Times Deutschland also reported Friday that giant Spanish bank Banco Santander SA had also signalled an interest in acquiring Dresdner Bank.
Germany's daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported Thursday that Allianz, which is Europe's biggest insurer, was holding "intensive" negotiations with Beijing's state-owned China Investment Corporation (CIC) over the possible sale of Dresdner.
The CIC declined to comment on the reports, with a spokeswoman telling the Deutsche Presse-Agentur
