Commerzbank Accelerates Digital Transformation

• Massive expansion in the use of AI and cloud applications
• Focus on improving digital customer experience, modernising IT infrastructure and enhancing efficiency

Commerzbank continues to accelerate its digital transformation. To support these efforts, the Bank has agreed strategic partnerships with Google Cloud and Microsoft. The goal is to comprehensively advance Commerzbank's digital transformation through the increased use of cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI) and improved data analysis. These partnerships support the growth and transformation objectives of Commerzbank's strategy upgrade “Momentum”. The Bank now has access to a significantly greater technological and personnel resources at its disposal.

“By intensifying our cooperation with Google Cloud and Microsoft, we will considerably accelerate the digital transformation of the Bank,” said Christiane Vorspel, Chief Operating Officer and Member of the Board of Managing Directors of Commerzbank. “Both sides benefit from these partnerships. We bring banking expertise, and our partners provide their technological know-how. The goals of the partnerships are also to achieve a technological transfer of knowledge into the bank and to expand our competencies in AI and cloud technology.”

“Google Cloud is proud to embark on an expanded strategic partnership with Commerzbank, powering their digital transformation with our advanced AI, data analytics, and infrastructure solutions," said Thomas Kurian, CEO of Google Cloud. "Together, we will enable Commerzbank to integrate AI into all business areas and improve digital customer experiences. This partnership is part of our commitment to driving lasting and transformative change and creating value for Commerzbank."

“Microsoft's extensive experience with the financial industry, as well as its adherence to regulatory, security, and responsible AI principles, are major advantages for our customers,” said Agnes Heftberger, Chairwoman of the Management Board of Microsoft Germany. “Our cloud transformation approach for Commerzbank is designed to modernise infrastructure, enhance efficiency, and foster innovation through AI. This will enable the bank to achieve sustainable growth and further improve customer engagement.”

In the coming years, Commerzbank will migrate more applications to cloud computing platforms. This will allow the Bank to use AI and data more effectively and efficiently, as more data will be available for analysis and AI-driven applications. The modernisation of banking applications will involve using an AI-driven programming assistant from Microsoft, making software development more efficient. Generative AI-based tools like Google Gemini assist in the automated, MiFID-compliant documentation of advisory conversations with corporate clients. The Bank also plans to expand its use of AI-based applications such as Google DocAI for document management. Chatbot functionalities will handle a larger volume of customer enquiries more quickly, further enhancing service quality for customers.

In recent years, Commerzbank has already moved part of its IT infrastructure to Google Cloud and Microsoft Azure. This has enabled the Bank to achieve a higher level of automation, strengthen its IT security and stability, and realise significant cost advantages. In Germany, Commerzbank employees have had access to cobaGPT since early March this year, an intelligent chatbot based on Microsoft's Azure OpenAI Service.

A part of the partnership with Google Cloud includes Commerzbank becoming a member of the Google Cloud Customer Advisory Board, which consists of a selected group of global customers. This allows the Bank to directly influence the development of technical applications from Google Cloud. Furthermore, Commerzbank gains early access to the latest innovations from Alphabet.

Press contact Google Cloud

Jess Latimer
Phone: +44 75 5359-1061

Press contact Microsoft Deutschland

Markus Göbel
Phone: +49 89 3176-4932

About Commerzbank

With its two business segments – Corporate Clients and Private and Small-Business Customers –, Commerzbank, as a full-service bank, offers a comprehensive portfolio of financial services. It is the leading bank for the German Mittelstand and a strong partner for around 24,000 corporate client groups. Commerzbank transacts approximately 30% of Germany’s foreign trade financing. The Bank is present internationally in more than 40 countries in the corporate clients’ business – wherever its Mittelstand clients, large corporates, and institutional clients need it. In addition, Commerzbank supports its international clients with a business relationship to Germany, Austria, or Switzerland and companies operating in selected future-oriented industries. With more than €400 bn assets under management, Commerzbank is also one of the leading banks for private and small-business customers in Germany. Under the brand Commerzbank, it offers a wide range of products and services with an omni-channel approach: online and mobile, via phone or video in the remote advisory centre, and personally in its around 400 branches. Under the brand comdirect, it offers all core services as a digital primary bank 24/7 and, as a performance broker, solutions for saving, investing, and securities trading. Its Polish subsidiary mBank S.A. is an innovative digital bank that serves approximately 5.8 million private and corporate customers, predominantly in Poland, as well as in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

About Google Cloud

Google Cloud is the new way to the cloud, providing AI, infrastructure, developer, data, security, and collaboration tools built for today and tomorrow. Google Cloud offers a powerful, fully integrated and optimized AI stack with its own planet-scale infrastructure, custom-built chips, generative AI models and development platform, as well as AI-powered applications, to help organizations transform. Customers in more than 200 countries and territories turn to Google Cloud as their trusted technology partner.

About Microsoft

Microsoft Deutschland GmbH was established in 1983 as a subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation (Redmond, U.S.A.). In Germany, we employ over 3,000 individuals across our seven locations in Berlin, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Cologne, Munich, Stuttgart, and Walldorf. Together with our 30,000 partners in Germany, we support businesses with innovative solutions for the intelligent cloud and Intelligent Edge, helping them successfully position themselves for digital transformation. Furthermore, Microsoft is a global leader in many other areas such as productive software solutions, IT security, innovative hardware, and development platforms, which also incorporate open-source technology. Additionally, we connect over 950 million people worldwide through our career network, LinkedIn. With Xbox and Game Pass, we enable cross-platform gaming experiences. Microsoft also collaborates with politics, business, and science on various initiatives and projects to ensure everyone can participate in the progress of the digital society.

Disclaimer

This release contains forward-looking statements. These are statements that do not describe facts of the past. Such statements in this announcement concern, among other things, the expected future business development of Commerzbank, expected efficiency gains and synergies, expected growth prospects and other opportunities for an increase in the value of Commerzbank, as well as the expected future financial results, restructuring expenses and other financial developments and disclosures. These forward-looking statements are based on current plans, expectations, estimates and forecasts of the Executive Board. They are subject to a number of assumptions and are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results or developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Such factors include, but are not limited to, the state of the financial markets in Germany, Europe, the USA and other regions in which Commerzbank generates a significant part of its revenues and holds a significant part of its assets, the development of asset prices and the development of market volatilities, in particular due to the ongoing European debt crisis, the possible default of borrowers or counterparties to trading transactions, the implementation of its strategic initiatives to improve the business model, the reliability of its risk management policies, procedures and methodologies, risks due to regulatory changes and other risks. Forward-looking statements therefore only apply as of the date on which they are made. Commerzbank undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements contained in this announcement to reflect events or circumstances that occur after the date of this announcement.