Or the threat may have come from another predator: Bayerische Vereinsbank sought a merger with a Bavarian rival, Hypobank, because its management was scared of being gobbled up by Deutsche Bank.

ECONOMIST: How mergers go wrong

Mr Kohlhaussen has a tendency to balk at headline-grabbing deals, even at the last minute: in 1996, he pulled out of a merger with Bayerische Vereinsbank (now HypoVereinsbank) days before it was due to be announced.

ECONOMIST: German banks

Take the big German banks: Deutsche, Dresdner, Commerzbank, and Bayerische Hypo-und Vereinsbank.

ECONOMIST: Fund management