Postbank draws domestic, foreign interest

Deutsche Post has received expressions of interest for Deutsche Postbank that are clearly above €10 billion and a sale could go quickly, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Though a formal decision to sell Germany's biggest retail bank has not yet been taken and depends on the offers received, a sale is increasingly likely and could take place within weeks once due diligence starts, the sources said.

Commerzbank and Allianz are making a joint approach, but foreign financial players are also interested, the sources said.

Deutsche Post AG is a global logistics provider and operates through five business divisions. The mail division provides services across the entire mail value chain, including production facilities at central hubs, sales offices and production centres on four continents, as well as direct connections to more than 140 countries. The express division transports courier, express and parcel shipments all over the world, combining air and ground transport, under the DHL brand. The logistics division, which also operates under the DHL brand provides a range of international logistics services, carrying goods by rail, road, air and sea, and has long-term contracts with major and multinational companies in a variety of industrial sectors.

The financial services division operates through its Deutsche Postbank AG subsidiary, a retail bank network in Germany. The services division bundles internal services across the Deutsche Post group.

Deutsche Postbank AG (Postbank) is a Germany-based financial services provider. Postbank forms the banking operation of Deutsche Post AG, its majority shareholder, and operates in four business areas. The Retail Banking division offers traditional banking services, such as payment transactions to the deposit banking and lending businesses to bonds, investment funds, insurance policies and home savings contracts. The Corporate Banking business includes solutions for payment transactions, commercial real estate finance, traditional corporate finance for small and medium-sized enterprises, leasing, factoring and investment management.