The prospective merger of Deutsche Bank and smaller rival Commerzbank is speculated to have a huge impact on the German banking industry and also puts 30,000 jobs at risk.

While a successful tie-up of these two banks would create the second largest bank in Europe, behind HSBC, it will be at the cost of thousands of jobs. Hence, the merger faces fierce opposition from the union and the shareholders. Jan Duscheck, a representative of the German union Verdi, shared “10,000 jobs were at risk in the short term, according to reports.”  He also added that these numbers could triple over the longer term.

These opposing views are the reason that while the bank confirms that formal discussions are underway with Commerzbank (CRZBF), CEO Christian Sewing told Deutsche Bank (DB) employees he would only pursue options that make "economic sense."

Together the two banks currently employ 140,000 people worldwide - 91,700 at Deutsche and 49,000 in Commerzbank.

Deutsche has been struggling to generate sustainable profits since the 2008 financial crisis. And the German government seems to be in favor of the merger as it could result in huge cost savings for the banks as both struggle to generate growth.