Commerzbank AG vowed to increase profitability, including by cutting thousands of jobs in Germany, as Chief Executive Officer Bettina Orlopp seeks to avoid a takeover by rival UniCredit SpA.The German lender will eliminate about 3,

German lender Commerzbank said Thursday it plans to cut about 3,900 jobs, around 10 percent of its workforce, seeking to fight off pressure for a tie-up from Italian bank UniCredit. It has since boosted its holding in the German bank to around 28 percent.

Commerzbank said on Thursday it would cut 3,900 jobs and unveiled more ambitious financial targets as part of a strategy revamp designed to head off UniCredit's advances for a tie-up between the German and Italian lenders.

German lender Commerzbank said Thursday it plans to cut about 3,900 jobs, around 10 percent of its workforce, as it seeks to fight off advances from Italian bank UniCredit.

The battle for Commerzbank, pitting one of Italy’s biggest banks against the German establishment, has become a test case of the country’s ability to fend off foreign suitors and prevent its financial centre from losing one of its few remaining big commercial banks.

German lender Commerzbank has announced plans to cut 3,900 jobs by 2028 and unveiled more ambitious financial targets as it seeks to fend off takeover advances from Italian bank UniCredit

Commerzbank plans to lay off around 9% of its workforce in a bid to boost profitability and convince investors of its standalone prospects as it fends off an unwanted approach from Italy’s UniCredit.Germany’s leading lender for small and medium-size companies outlined a fresh strategy to defend its independence as UniCredit’s attempts to engineer a merger are slowed down by political opposition and pending elections.

Commerzbank announced it will eliminate 3,900 full-time positions by 2028, largely in its native Germany, as it unveiled a spate of new strategic targets.