Commerzbank , fending off a possible takeover by Italy's UniCredit , said on Friday that net profit rose nearly 12% in the first quarter, beating expectations despite strong headwinds for the German economy.

German lender Commerzbank on Friday reported its best quarterly profit since 2011, ahead of a key shareholder meeting where it will seek to rally support to fend off advances from Italy's UniCredit.Commerzbank's bosses are set to use an annual general meeting next Thursday to rally support for their strategy to remain independent.

Last month, Germany’s Federal Cartel Office approved Italy’s second-largest lender’s plan to purchase a major stake in state-backed Commerzbank. UniCredit revealed last year that it had secured a position of around 28%, with plans to increase it to 29.9%, just short of the 30% threshold requiring it to submit a public bid for the entire bank.