Germany’s chancellor decried “unfriendly attacks” on banks after UniCredit moved to raise its stake in the lender.

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,

Shares of Commerzbank traded 3.1% lower on Monday after the government said that it would retain its 12% stake in the German bank for now in a move that will likely keep any merger with Italy's UniCredit on hold.