ROME — Italian companies are expanding their footprint in Germany, with more than 100 acquisitions and commercial deals worth €17.8 billion since the start of 2023.
The push spans banking, media, industry, transport and infrastructure, showing a broader corporate move into Europe’s largest economy.
Why it matters: UniCredit dominates the numbers, its Commerzbank operation is worth €14.9 billion and has brought its position in the German lender to 47.6%.
- But Italian expansion goes beyond banking, reaching media, ports, rail and industrial technology.
- The trend predates Germany’s current economic difficulties: between 2015 and 2022, Italian operations there were worth €9.5 billion, versus €7.7 billion of German investments in Italy.
The big picture: Italy and Germany are major manufacturing competitors, but the investment flows show how deeply intertwined their corporate sectors have become.
- The most visible case is UniCredit’s push into Commerzbank. In media, MFE — MediaForEurope has built a 75.61% stake in German broadcaster ProSiebenSat.1, in an operation worth €1.5 billion.
- Italian industrial groups are moving too. Ariston acquired Centrotec Climate Systems for €1 billion, while the Aponte family’s MSC bought 49.9% of the company managing Hamburg’s container terminal.
Zoom in: Transport is another front. Italo has reached an agreement with Siemens for 26 high-speed trains, with an option for another 14, as it prepares to challenge Deutsche Bahn and connect Germany’s main cities from 2028.
- Meanwhile, MerMec acquired Hitachi Rail’s signaling operations in France, Germany and the UK for €250 million, while EssilorLuxottica spent €300 million for 80% of Heidelberg Engineering.
Th bottom line: UniCredit makes the €17.8 billion figure unusually large. But the 100-plus operations across multiple sectors point to something broader: Italian companies are increasingly using acquisitions and investments to deepen their position inside the German economy.
