Commerzbank staff's UniCredit complaint rejected

German prosecutors have rejected a complaint by Commerzbank staff representatives alleging market manipulation by Italy's UniCredit during its hostile takeover bid for the Frankfurt-based bank.

The Frankfurt prosecutors' office said on July 10 that it would not open a criminal investigation after reviewing the complaint. A spokeswoman said there was not sufficient indication that a crime had been committed.

The employee body filed the complaint in June. It accused UniCredit of inflating acceptance figures for its offer after Commerzbank said it had no evidence that its own institutional investors had accepted the bid.

UniCredit has previously denied malpractice linked to its attempt to take over Commerzbank. Earlier in the week, the Italian bank said it had secured an additional 17.6 percent stake as part of the bid, bringing its total secured voting rights to 49.65 percent.

Commerzbank said acceptance among independent shareholders had been low and described that as evidence that the offer was unattractive.

UniCredit launched a 35-billion-euro, or $41-billion, takeover offer in May after building up its stake in Commerzbank. The bid has faced resistance from Commerzbank and from Germany's government, which is also a shareholder in the bank.