The following charts show how the two banks differ across an array of measures and what any combined bank could look like: 1. UNICREDIT VS. COMMERZBANK The Italian lender is more efficient and more profitable than its German counterpart - with a market capitalisation that is more than triple the value of Commerzbank.

An influential Commerzbank AG investor urged the lender to engage in talks with UniCredit SpA, as the government in Berlin acknowledged there’s little it can do should the Italian rival continue to raise its stake.

Commerzbank's designated CEO, Bettina Orlopp, said on Thursday that the bank will hold a first round of talks with UniCredit on Friday as the Italian lender presses for a possible tie-up. The remarks are her first since she was

The drivers of recent banking transactions are many of those that have shaped the European banking industry for the past 15 years: sluggish revenue outlook as the sugar rush of higher interest rates fades and rising costs as the promise of IT-driven efficiency is continually offset by higher investment spend,

ECB chief Christine Lagarde said Monday that cross-border banking mergers in Europe were "desirable" to boost their competitiveness, despite mounting German opposition to a potential tie-up between Commerzbank and Italy's UniCredit.