Commerzbank, which is putting UK-based private bank Kleinwort Benson up for sale after acquiring it along with Dresdner Bank from Allianz last year, said it logged an overall group operating loss of €591 million ($794 million) in the first quarter of 2009, compared with an operating pro-forma profit of €470 million in the same period a year ago.

Excluding one-off effects, the operating profit for the recent three month period was positive at €643 million, the Frankfurt-listed bank said in a statement.

“Despite the continuing difficult market environment, the core business areas, Private Customers (€48 million) and Mittelstandsbank (€339 million), have finished the first three months of the financial year with a profit,” the bank said.

Commerzbank is refocusing its business lines to concentrate on core banking activities in Germany.

"The Private Customer and Mittelstandsbank segments, client-focused Corporates & Markets activities as well as Central and Eastern Europe will be at the heart of the new Commerzbank. We want to fully exploit our earnings potential and to continue gaining market share," said Martin Blessing, chairman of the board of managing directors of Commerzbank.

"Roadmap 2012 is our response to the challenges of the financial markets and the economic crisis and follows the logic of the Dresdner Bank takeover: we are focusing on our strengths as the house bank for private and corporate customers in Germany and adapting our business model accordingly. We want to return to profitability no later than 2011. Starting in 2012, we want to achieve an operating profit of more than €4 billion per annum and a return on equity after tax of around 12 per cent,” he said.

“This is appropriate for our business model and our risk profile. By 2012 the risk-weighted assets of the bank will be reduced to €290 billion,” he added.

Following talks with the European Commission, Commerzbank said it can increase its core capital (Tier 1) by €10 billion.

The bank also announced a number of senior management changes. Ulrich Sieber, head of the group area Human Resources at Commerzbank, and Jochen Klösges, head of Group Development, are being appointed to the board of management as of 1 June.

Mr Sieber will be responsible for the area of Human Resources and Integration at board level; Mr Klösges for the newly-created Real Estate and Public Finance segment. As of 1 June, chief financial officer Eric Strutz will also take over the new Portfolio Restructuring Unit. Achim Kassow, responsible for Private Clients, will also be responsible for the segment Central & Eastern Europe from 1 June onwards.