Monte dei Paschi di Siena (MPS) makes a €13.3 billion takeover bid for rival Mediobanca, aiming to reshape Italy's banking sector. The move comes amidst a period of significant consolidation and turbulence in the Italian banking industry.
Monte dei Paschi di Siena (MPS), Italy 's oldest bank, has made a €13.3 billion takeover bid for larger rival Mediobanca, a move that could significantly shake up Italy 's banking sector. The all-share offer, representing a modest 5 percent premium over Mediobanca's Thursday closing price, was met with mixed reactions in the market. MPS shares fell 8 percent on Friday, while Mediobanca's stock rose nearly 5 percent.
This ambitious acquisition comes amidst a period of intense restructuring in the Italian banking industry, marked by a series of mergers and acquisitions that could reshape the power dynamics of the country's financial landscape. The Italian government, which bailed out MPS in 2017, remains its largest shareholder, though its stake has been significantly reduced in recent years, falling from over 60 percent to less than 12 percent. This decline in government ownership coincides with a turnaround under Chief Executive Luigi Lovaglio, which has roughly doubled MPS's share price. The resulting sell-down has handed stakes to prominent figures in Italian finance: Delfin, the holding company of the Del Vecchio family, and Roman building tycoon Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone, whose son currently sits on MPS's board. Delfin has tripled its stake since November to just under 10 percent, while Caltagirone holds 5 percent. Notably, both Delfin and Caltagirone are also major shareholders in Mediobanca, where their combined holdings approach 30 percent, but they have been locked in a long-standing dispute with Chief Executive Alberto Nagel. Adding another layer of complexity, Mediobanca, Delfin, and Caltagirone are also the top three shareholders in the Italian insurer Generali, where Caltagirone has publicly clashed with management.MPS's bid for Mediobanca follows a recent deal struck by Generali with France's Natixis to create a European asset management giant. This move drew criticism from Rome, which expressed concerns about Italian savings potentially being managed abroad and the risk of capital flight. Caltagirone also opposed the tie-up with Natixis, according to sources familiar with the situation. The Italian government had previously aimed to merge MPS with Banco BPM to forge a domestic banking champion capable of competing with larger rivals Intesa Sanpaolo and UniCredit. However, these plans were derailed when UniCredit, also pursuing a merger with Germany's Commerzbank, launched a hostile takeover offer for Banco BPM in November. Banco BPM, currently defending itself against this pursuit, had previously made its own takeover bid for local asset manager Anima. MPS stated on Friday that it anticipates a merger with Mediobanca to generate €700 million annually in pre-tax synergies. The deal, it added, aims to deliver substantial profitability levels and maintain a solid capital position. Under the proposed terms, Mediobanca investors would receive 23 new MPS shares for every 10 Mediobanca shares they own. MPS has a market capitalization of roughly €9 billion, while Mediobanca's equity is valued at €12.7 billion
BANKING ITALY MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS MONTE DEI PASCHI DI SIENA MEDIOBANCA FINANCIAL INDUSTRY TAKEOVER BID
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