Germany

BlackRock Inc. has initiated an auction for German startup SellerX, taking the unusually aggressive step after a loan granted to the Amazon aggregator soured, Bloomberg News reported. An advertisement published Friday in the Börsen-Zeitung newspaper stated that the auction for the L Catterton-backed firm has been scheduled for Sept. 17 at a Berlin hotel. In Germany, such auctions can be used by creditors to seize control of companies after negotiations between an enterprise, investors and lenders have hit an impasse, often wiping out equity held by investors.

German inflation slowed to the European Central Bank’s target in August — supporting the case for another cut in interest rates next month, Bloomberg News reported. The 2% reading — the lowest since 2021 — was down from 2.6% in July and less than all but one economist surveyed by Bloomberg had estimated. A report earlier Thursday showed that price pressures also eased significantly in Spain, reaching a one-year low. The disinflation trend is expected to play out in the euro zone’s other two biggest economies — France and Italy — when numbers are published Friday.

Sentiment at German companies edged lower this month, as Europe’s largest economy shows little sign of a recovery amid a persistent manufacturing slump, the Wall Street Journal reported. The Ifo Institute’s business-climate index fell to 86.6 in August, from 87.0 in July, data showed Monday. It marked the fourth decline in as many months. “The German economy is increasingly falling into crisis,” Clemens Fuest, president of the Ifo Institute, said. Companies assessed their current situation as worse, and expectations for the future were more pessimistic, he said.

German chipmaker Infineon has settled a more than decade-long legal dispute over insolvent former unit Qimonda, agreeing to pay a higher than initially planned 753.5 million euros ($837 million), both companies said on Thursday, Reuters reported. The settlement with Qimonda insolvency administrator Michael Jaffe will not affect Infineon's operating profitability, a company spokesperson said, adding that it had already taken provisions amounting to 221 million euros over the case.

The German government on Friday announced plans to provide about 3.3 billion euros ($3.7 billion) in funding for projects to make industry more climate-friendly, including by storing carbon dioxide underground at offshore sites, the Associated Press reported. Germany, which has Europe's biggest economy and is home to many energy-intensive industries, aims to cut its emissions to “net zero” by 2045. The new program is aimed largely at medium-sized companies. The Economy Ministry plans to launch the program, which also covers projects to shift to more climate-friendly production, next month.

German authorities have seized almost 25 million euros ($28 million) in cash in a nationwide operation targeting cryptocurrency ATMs, the country's financial regulator BaFin said in a statement on Tuesday, Reuters reported. Authorities seized 13 machines that had been operating without the necessary permits, posing a risk of money-laundering, according to the regulator. The ATMs had been used to trade bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies and were located in 35 different locations, the statement said.

In a picturesque wine town about 100 kilometers (62 miles) from Frankfurt lies a hidden bunker that for decades was one of Germany’s best-kept secrets. Built in 1962, the cavernous structure housed alternative deutsche marks, should West Germany’s Cold War foes flood the market with counterfeit banknotes in a bid to trigger hyperinflation. In the end, the back-up currency wasn’t needed and was destroyed in 1988. Concern among Germans over the security of their money persists, however.

Weltbild, once one of Germany’s largest bookselling operations, is closing down on 31st August. The remaining 14 brick-and-mortar stores and Weltbild’s online shop will be affected, with 440 employees being laid off, The Bookseller reported. Owner WBD2C Group, itself a subsidiary of Düsseldorf-based private equity investor Droege Group, called in insolvency administrator Christian Plail in early June. However, while Plail talked to several possible suitors, none were prepared to buy the loss-making company.