Following Eurohypo´s fith anniversary on August 13, 2007, please find an overview on the banks exciting and successfull history in the last years:

2007: Business model implemented

2006: Prize-winning bank

2005: Commerzbank enters the picture

2004: New headquarters

2003: Successful from the very start

2002: A new bank comes into being

Eurohypo AG is a young bank “with a long history”:

On 6 November 2001 the three major German private-sector banks – Deutsche Bank, Dresdner Bank and Commerzbank – announced at a joint press conference, together with the Management Boards of their mortgage bank subsidiaries, their intention to merge their shareholdings in the “old” Eurohypo, Rheinhyp and Deutsche Hyp.

"We want to be a leading provider of commercial property finance in Germany and Europe", phrased Dr. Karsten von Köller, member of the Management Board of Rheinhyp and first Chairman of Eurohypo AG, the objective of the merger back then. The merger agreements were signed on 29 April 2002. In June the Annual General Meetings of all three institutions voted in favour of the merger and on 13 August 2002 the new Eurohypo AG was registered in the Commercial Register of the City of Frankfurt am Main.

The new bank built on old foundations – the histories of the oldest predecessor institutions, the Deutsche Hypothekenbank and the Frankfurter Hypothekenbank date back to 1862 – went from the very beginning to become a global player. It has been a frontline player in the global property business ever since.

The main reason for the merger was the opportunity to become the strongest provider of property and government finance in European financial and capital markets and to act as a benchmark issuer on the capital markets.

As part of the merger, Dresdner Bank and Commerzbank in Germany integrated their negotiable commercial property finance businesses. Deutsche Bank integrated its portion of domestic property centres into the new bank. Furthermore the Real Estate Investment Banking Team (REIB) of Deutsche Bank in London and the REIB Team of Dresdner Bank in the USA were absorbed.

Comprehensive know-how and many years of experience have thus been bundled in the highly complex property finance segment. Eurohypo provides this benefit to professional investors to enable them to implement major financings.

Given its mixed bank status and its size, the new bank had a considerable advantage over its competitors right from the start: whilst pure mortgage banks were subject to statutory restrictions, Eurohypo was able to offer its clients the full range of property finance products.

The new Pfandbrief Act has been in force since July 2005. It plays a part in enhancing the attractiveness of the German Pfandbrief and ensuring high quality, security and transparency standards now and in the future. As market leader, Eurohypo benefits from this when issuing German Pfandbriefe.

Commerzbank has been considering to acquire Eurohypo for some time. In preparation for the takeover, a meeting between the Management Boards of Commerzbank, Allianz and Deutsche Bank took place on 10 November 2005. The agreements to sell the shares to Commerzbank were signed on 16 November 2005. Thus Commerzbank acquired a subsidiary, which is not only the largest Pfandbrief issuer in Europe, but has also become the most important player in the European securitisation business and market leader in Syndicated Loans.

5 Jahre Eurohypo: A brief look at its exciting and successfull history in the past five years

2007: Business model implemented
In the first half of 2007, Eurohypo increased its new business in commercial real estate financing by almost 30% to EUR 22.5 billion. Return on equity is on course to meet the 15% target. The innovative business model is delivering the results we want. It is based on the pillars of corporate and investment banking (commercial real estate), public finance and global markets (capital market activities). Private client business was this year outsourced to Commerzbank.

2006: Prize-winning bank
Eurohypo was named the best bank in the world for real estate financing. It won first place in the Commercial Bank Global category at the 2006 Real Estate Awards for Excellence. It also gained the accolade of European Funding Partner of the Year for its pioneering work in the securitisation of commercial mortgagebacked securities (CMBSs).

2005: Commerzbank enters the picture
Commerzbank had been thinking about buying Eurohypo for quite some time. On 10 November, a meeting took place between the management boards of Commerzbank, Allianz and Deutsche Bank in preparation for the acquisition. The contracts for the sale of shares to Commerzbank were signed on 16 November. This gave Commerzbank a subsidiary that is not just the largest issuer of mortgage bonds in Europe, but also the industry frontrunner in European securitisation business and syndicated loans.

2004: New headquarters
Eurohypo moved into its corporate headquarters, the Vitreum in Eschborn. The move brought employees who used to be scattered across three buildings in Frankfurt together under one roof.

2003: Successful from the very start
The new bank build on old foundations – its oldest predecessors, Deutsche Hypothekenbank and Frankfurt Hypothekenbank, date back to 1862 – was a global player from the very outset. Since then, it has been leading the way in the global real estate business. The merger was successfully concluded, and the integration of the three banks completed.

2002: A new bank comes into being
On 6 November 2001, the three largest German private banks – Deutsche Bank, Dresdner Bank and Commerzbank – announced in a joint press conference with the management boards of their mortgage bank subsidiaries that they want to merge their holdings in Eurohypo, Rheinhyp and Deutsche Hyp. The goal of the merger, according to Dr Karsten von Köller, a member of the Rheinhyp management board, was “We want to be a leading provider of commercial real estate financing in Germany and Europe.” The merger contracts were signed on 29 April 2002. The merger was approved at the banks’ general shareholders’ meetings in June, and the new Eurohypo AG was entered in the Frankfurt commercial register on 13 August.