German billionaire takes 7.8 pct stake in Kloeckner

FRANKFURT Feb 18 (Reuters) - German billionaire Albrecht Knauf bought a 7.82 percent stake in German steel distributor Kloeckner, becoming the group's largest shareholder, according to a stock exchange announcement.

Financial sources said he had mandated Deutsche Bank to advise him, meaning the interest in Kloeckner is likely strategic.

Knauf has previously served on the board of soccer club Borussia Dortmund, and is the chairman of Knauf Interfer, a steel distributor based in Essen, Germany.

A spokeswoman for Kloeckner said she did not know what Knauf's plans were and declined to comment further on the stock exchange announcement.

Knauf Interfer and Deutsche Bank were not immediately available for comment.

Knauf Interfer has annual turnover of 1.3 million tons, compared with 6.7 million for Kloeckner.

(Reporting by Philipp Halstrick, Alexander Huebner and Victoria Bryan; Editing by Dale Hudson)