HVB, the second largest banking group in Germany, is planning to float its Bank Austria Creditanstalt subsidiary and its real estate business, having posted its first ever annual loss in 2002.

In an effort to reinforce its capital base the bank will sell up to 25% of its stake in Bank Austria in an initial public offering on the Vienna Stock Exchange, before the flotation of its real estate business on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange scheduled for the fourth quarter of this year.