Deutsche Bank AG’s DB, -0.23% top executives have agreed to hold discussions with rival Commerzbank AG CRZBY, -0.79% about a potential merger, as Germany’s two biggest banks explore strategic options after suffering prolonged performance and share-price declines, people close to the banks said.
The informal talks reflect a deepening willingness by Deutsche Bank’s management board to engage in a possible tie-up, though executives this week continued to see a potential merger as one option, some of the people said.
Heightened pressure on the banks from German government officials to address their lagging performance, and consider in more detail how a merger might take shape, also factored into recent discussions, the people said.
The agreement by Deutsche Bank’s management board to hold talks was earlier reported by the Welt am Sonntag newspaper. One person close to Deutsche Bank said the agreement was made in the latter half of February. The management board is composed of top executives and is responsible for setting its strategy with oversight from the so-called supervisory board of the bank.
An expanded version of this report appears on WSJ.com.
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