MILAN (Reuters) - Moody's would consider hiking UniCredit's junior credit rating one notch above Italy's sovereign rating if it bought Commerzbank, depending on a number of factors including an ability to contain execution and operational risks, the ratings agency said.

The move by Moody’s is also notable because it puts Pilot’s debt rating at a level that is considered investment-grade. The Ba1 rating it had previously was not investment-grade. The S&P rating of BBB+ is three notches more than the cutoff for investment- versus non-investment-grade.

UniCredit's acquisition of Commerzbank could prompt Moody's to consider raising its rating on the Italian bank's riskier debt, the credit rating agency said on Wednesday. Moody's affirmed UniCredit's long-term senior unsecured debt rating at 'Baa1' - two notches above Italy's 'Baa3' rating and already as high as it can go under Moody's methodology.

A senior German banker said there a several reasons why a takeover of Commerzbank AG by UniCredit SpA could be beneficial, demonstrating that the strong opposition to the potential deal by the country’s government isn’t a national consensus.