Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank have each bought a 1% stake in Deutsche Börse in the past month in an attempt to wrest control of the German exchange from its largest hedge fund shareholders and force a merger with Euronext.

The German banks' holding is worth €110m ($140m) based on last week's share price. The purchases took place as Deutsche Börse attempted to derail the proposed "merger of equals" between the New York Stock Exchange and Euronext.