Fading prospects for a sale of IKB, the German bank stricken by its subprime investments, are piling pressure on the Berlin government ahead of a planned injection of more public money at the bank’s annual meeting next week.

IKB said on Thursday it was “temporarily” halting attempts to sell a €3bn ($4.6bn) portfolio of its worst loans, raising doubts over efforts to clean up the bank for a possible sale.