History
Commerzbank was founded in 1870 by individual and merchant bankers in Hamburg, Germany. After merging with Berliner Bank, it moved its headquarters to Berlin in 1905. After World War II, the headquarters first moved to Düsseldorf and, in 1958, to Germany's financial centre, Frankfurt.
The Commerzbank Tower (designed by British architect Norman Foster) was Europe's first ecological skyscraper and also, from its completion in 1997 until 2004, Europe's tallest skyscraper at a height of 259 meters.
Commerzbank was the first German bank to establish a branch in New York City in 1971, however this office was significantly scaled back in 2004 with the demise of its investment banking unit, Commerzbank Securities.
In August 2008, Commerzbank announced that it would purchase 100% of Dresdner Bank from Allianz for 5.5 billion Euro, largely with shares. Dresdner Bank was legally merged with Commerzbank on 11 May 2009 and ceased to be an independent entity.
December 2008 - January 2009. The German Government is supporting Commerzbank with a loan of up to 18.2 Billion Euros.
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