German State-owned Lender KfW Might Take Over Stake In EADS

Germany's state-owned development bank Kreditanstalt fuer Wiederaufbau, or KfW, said Wednesday it might take over a 7.5% stake in European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co. EADS NV (EAD.FR) from luxury car maker Daimler AG (DAI.XE) in the second half of the year and an additional 4.5% held by commercial banks and insurers.

"We could buy Daimler's 7.5% stake" if the German government gives the go-ahead, said KfW Chief Executive Ulrich Schroeder, adding that all legal questions have to be cleared which won't be before the second half of this year.

Schroeder said the commercial partners of the Dedalus consortium "appear to be poised to sell their 4.5% stake," which could also be bought by the state-owned lender. The public lenders of the Dedalus consortium, however, don't seem willing to sell their stake at the moment, he added.

The Dedalus consortium in total holds 7.5% in EADS. Of this 4.5% which belongs to commercial banks and insurers like Deutsche Bank AG (DBK.XE) and Allianz SE (ALV.XE).

-By Eyk Henning, Dow Jones Newswires; 49-69-29725-108; [e-mail]