ROME (Reuters) -Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone, a leading shareholder in both Mediobanca and Generali, on Friday expressed a negative view on the Italian bank’s proposed acquisition of Banca Generali, the insurer’s private banking unit.
Caltagirone was speaking on the sidelines of the presentation of the Bank of Italy’s annual report, where Governor Fabio Panetta said bank mergers had to create value, “first and foremost” for customers.
Asked if, in his capacity as a Mediobanca shareholder, he saw value in the lender’s bid for Banca Generali, Caltagirone said: “No, I don’t.”
Mediobanca has proposed buying Banca Generali in an effort to thwart a takeover offer by Monte dei Paschi di Siena, a bailed-out lender in which Caltagirone is also a shareholder.
Mediobanca is planning to finance the deal by tendering its stake in Generali in exchange for shares in Banca Generali.
It has called a shareholder meeting on June 16 to seek approval for the project, which it has described as an alternative to the Monte dei Paschi proposal.
MPS has said instead the two transactions are not mutually exclusive.
(Reporting by Valentina Za; writing by Alvise Armellini, editing by Giulia Segreti)
