UniCredit acquired the additional Commerzbank shares through financial instruments and has submitted a request to boost the holding to up to 29.9%. The German government, a major shareholder of Commerzbank,

Italy's UniCredit defied Germany's defence of Commerzbank by using derivative contracts on Monday to raise its potential stake in the German bank close to 21%, while waiting for regulatory approval to go above 9.

UniCredit on Monday said it’s reached an agreement to further increase its stake in Commerzbank as the German government increasingly attempts to ward off an Italian acquisition of its number-two bank.