The super acquisitive Chinese conglomerate HNA is said to be among the initial bidders for the German Landesbank HSH Nordbank.
The HNA Group, which includes aviation, real estate, financial services, tourism and logistics in its stable, has recently increased its stake in Germany's country’s largest bank, Deutsche Bank, to 4.76 per cent.
HSH Nordbank is located in Germany’s largest port city and is the country’s largest shipping bank. That means it also faces the associated problems as a result of the malaise in global shipping markets.
Room For Negotiation
HSH Nordbank, which received a state bail-out during the 2008-09 financial crisis, is seen as the enfant terrible among Germany’s state-owned regional banks or Landesbanken.
Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein, the two north German states that own the lender and had to rescue it during the financial crisis, have until the end of February 2018 to find a buyer for the bank or wind it down, HNA might just have the time and the finance to strike a deal.
