Commerzbank: Martin Zielke is new boss – SPIEGEL ONLINE

What has not speculated everything after Martin Blessing had announced his resignation as Commerzbank CEO last fall: A woman could take over the top job at the second largest bank in the country, or a top bankers from abroad. In the end it was Martin Zielke from Hofgeismar near Kassel. the Group for 14 years. A confidant of former bosses. Married, two children.

For him, the Supervisory Board decided at a special meeting on Sunday. It is a decision that plays it safe.

The 53-year-old Zielke was long not as a serious candidate for successor Blessing. This role had his rival Markus Beumer held that leads the SME sector for years, the gem of the Bank, the deserved by far the most money. According Beumer was long considered Blessings crown prince.

But Zielke, as executive board responsible for retail banking since 2010, took last mightily. The once weak retail banking contributed in the past year significantly to the fact that the bank in five years could announce a billion profit for the first time. Since the end of 2012 Zielke division has gained claims to more than 800,000 customers – and the net, ie after deduction of those who have left the bank

Zielke came here to play a key role.. With a large-scale marketing campaign, he managed to repair the tarnished image of the bank again somewhat. And while the competition from German Bank or Hypo-Vereinsbank had to announce the closure of hundreds of branches, Zielke was not tired of emphasizing the importance of the branch. This included his bank locations, was no longer on this case.

The fact that the Supervisory Board has now chosen precisely Zielke for the top job, is also a signal of how it future with Commerzbank to proceed – namely, just as before: small steps towards normality. Large international ambitions is likely to have the Bank thus finally interred.

The Bank has the state still get rid

Maybe this is also a good thing. Because it was precisely the great ambitions, who once led the bank to ruin. In the 2008 financial crisis it had to be saved from the collapse of more than 18 billion euros by the German state. Shortly before, she had taken the extremely crisis-laden Dresdner Bank – a mistake which retaliated.

long had Blessing struggle to find work off the burdens of the past. And in the meantime it seemed as if he would not live to see the end of his contract term as Fed Chairman. But since 2014 it’s back timidly up at Commerzbank -also thanks Zielke successes.

Quite out of the crisis, the Bank is certainly not today. Although she has repaid much of the state aid. But still, the federal government holds about 15 percent of the shares – and may accordingly also have a say in important decisions.

In addition, the bank a clear idea of ​​where they want to earn money in the future is still missing. The costs are still considered too high, and also in the return, the bank has not yet reached its own targets. Whether Zielke is right boss to solve these problems, he has yet to prove.