BERLIN (AFP) — Deutsche Bank, the biggest German bank, is planning a capital increase to raise up to 17 billion euros (27 billion dollars), news weekly Der Spiegel reported in its Monday issue.
The bank will seek approval for the move at a shareholders' meeting at the end of May, the report said, citing a copy of the agenda for the meeting.
Some four billion euros are expected to be raised by the sale of 55 million new shares. The banks' shareholders approved a similar step two years ago.
Der Spiegel said Deutsche Bank aimed to free up cash for acquisitions to take advantage of a drop in bank share prices due to the crisis in the US subprime lending market.
Deutsche Bank said Friday it would be interested in acquiring the German activities of Citigroup if the US banking giant wanted to sell them.
And the German bank's chief Josef Ackermann said earlier last week he wanted to bolster retail operations in Germany and reiterated an interest in Postbank, the German postal bank.
The comments followed a report that Deutsche Bank was getting set to unload several billion dollars in loans.
The deal, which the Financial Times said could be announced this week along with the bank's earnings release, would mark the third major sale this month of so-called leveraged loans, which are used to finance equity buy-outs.
It would also be the first in Europe, it added.
Possible buyers include the investment fund Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, the newspaper said.
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