Monte dei Paschi di Siena (MPS) will take full control of Mediobanca and delist it while preserving its brand, ending weeks of uncertainty over the future of the merchant bank.
MPS, which was bailed out by the state in 2017 and reprivatised in 2023-2024, last year acquired 86% of Mediobanca, raising question marks over whether it made sense to leave Mediobanca listed with such reduced floating capital.
The plans had created division within the company, with directors led by representatives of investor Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone opposing full integration of Mediobanca.
In presenting full-year results last week, MPS chief executive Luigi Lovaglio said the decision whether to delist Mediobanca was pending but MPS was working to maximise savings from the tie-up.
MPS said the board had decided to proceed with the delisting, without clarifying how the bank will acquire the 14% stake it does not already own.
It will then merge Mediobanca into the group and set up an unlisted entity to house its private and investment banking activities under the Mediobanca brand.
The new entity will also hold the 13% stake that makes Mediobanca the largest investor in Italian insurer Generali.
MPS is due to unveil a strategic plan for the combined group on February 27.
