Commerzbank is reshaping its asset management business to streamline investment operations across the units to drive growth in assets and mandates.
The German lender has consolidated its asset management operations under the umbrella of real assets manager Commerz Real.
Majority stakes in asset manager Aquila Capital, acquired last year, and in Yellowfin Asset Management, founded in 2023, have been transferred to Commerz Real as part of the consolidation process, a spokesperson for the bank told IPE.
The reorganisation involved the establishment of Commerz Real Capital as a new distribution company under the leadership of the former bank’s global head of distribution Thilo Wolf.
Commerzbank is selling its 18% stake in the impact-investing boutique Nixdorf Kapital, acquired last year to expand the range of services in sustainable asset management, to its majority shareholder, Nixdorf Marque, as part of an early succession plan.
It will continue to use the Nixdorf’s brand and closely work with founder Dagmar Nixdorf, said the Commerzbank’s spokesperson.
Commerzbank aims to offer a broad range of products and attract additional mandates also from pension funds, and increase the volume of assets under management across all asset classes going forward, the spokesperson said.
The bank is restructuring the asset management business also to pool resources and streamline investment processes.
“We have a clear growth strategy in asset management, which we are consistently implementing. Furthermore, we are also exploring other potential acquisitions and partnerships,” the spokesperson said.
Member of the executive board of Commerzbank Thomas Schaufler identified private equity and venture capital as asset classes targeted for expansion in asset management.
“In venture capital, we are looking for a cooperation partner. In private equity, we already work with Allianz Global Investors, and we are examining whether to expand our offering,” Schaufler said in an interview with Handelsblatt newspaper.
Commerzbank would likely bring on board another cooperation partner, but if demand from clients for private equity investments continues to rise, “we would also consider acquisitions”, he added.
The asset manager divisions of Commerzbank – Commerz Real, Aquila, Yellowfin and Commerzbank Vermögensverwaltung – manage €70bn of assets in total.
Yellowfin manages €14bn assets also on behalf of pension funds and corporates, investing exclusively in liquid asset classes.
“The long-term goal is to intensify cooperation between the different asset management units [at Commerzbank]. We can also offer our currency overlay management for products from boutiques focused on real assets,” said Yellowfin’s chair Andreas Neumann in an interview.
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