MILAN (Reuters) -Banca Progetto, a small Italian bank which investment firm Oaktree recently agreed to sell to Centerbridge, has been placed under court administration for allegedly lending money to a person arrested under mafia charges, a court document showed.
Banca Progetto had no immediate comment.
Milan prosecutors took similar action in recent months for companies part of both the Armani and LVMH groups amid probes into alleged worker exploitation at some of their suppliers.
The court appoints a temporary administrator to help a company fix problems while continuing to operate. No charges are laid against the company.
Prosecutors allege Banca Progetto granted the financing, which was guaranteed by the Italian state, without conducting the necessary checks on the borrower, the document of which Reuters obtained a copy showed.
Banca Progetto specialises in state-guaranteed financing.
Oaktree Capital Management in September struck a deal to sell Banca Progetto to funds managed by private equity firm Centerbridge Partners.
(Reporting by Emilio Parodi; Writing by Valentina Za; Editing by Gianluca Semeraro and Mark Potter)
