The head of the German savings bank association foresees a merger between several regional landesbanken, a move that would create the country's second-largest bank, Bloomberg News reported.

Media reports had suggested that Norddeutsche Landesbank Girozentrale, or NordLB, could merge with Landesbank Hessen-Thüringen Girozentrale, or Helaba, after which they would combine with Landesbank Baden-Württemberg, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale and Berlin Hyp AG.

Helmut Schleweis, the president of the DSGV association, said "five landesbanken is too many" and that a tie-up could happen, Bloomberg reported.

The banks in question held combined assets worth approximately €682 billion as of the end of 2017 — significantly higher than Germany's second-largest bank Commerzbank AG.