FRANKFURT (Reuters) - German lender NordLB’s chairman Reinhold Hilbers said on Friday the German state of Lower Saxony was reviewing how it could strengthen the public sector lender’s balance sheet after it scored worst among German banks in European stress tests.

The bank had a core tier one equity ratio of 7.07 percent under an adverse scenario, European bank stress tests showed on Friday.

The German state of Lower Saxony, where Hilbers is finance minister, is also the majority owner of NordLB.

“We are therefore reviewing how Lower Saxony can, within the framework of its ownership management, participate in a sustainable and future-proof concept in the form of strengthening capital,” Hilbers, who is also supervisory board chairman of NordLB, said in a statement released by the bank.