(Bloomberg) — Italy is preparing to start a formal review of UniCredit SpA’s unsolicited offer for Banco BPM SpA, people familiar with the matter said, a process under the government’s “Golden Power” rules that may impose conditions should a deal be approved.
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Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government intends to start the special process that allows authorities to block or impose conditions on transactions involving strategic assets, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing confidential information. The broader goal is to protect Banco BPM’s branches and jobs, they added.
A representative for Italy’s government didn’t respond to a request for comment. Italian newspaper La Stampa first reported the news.
The government’s potential move comes almost a month after Banco BPM urged Italy’s market regulator to take measures to protect the bank’s stakeholders from UniCredit’s approach, which was rebuffed by BPM Chief Executive Officer Giuseppe Castagna. In November, UniCredit offered 0.175 newly issued shares for each share in its smaller rival, valuing it at about €10.1 billion ($10.35 billion) at the time — a bid Castagna said was too low.
UniCredit’s surprise takeover offer has complicated Meloni’s vision of creating a third major Italian banking group. The bid came just weeks after Banco BPM itself bought a significant stake in Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA from the government, a move widely seen as a first step in that plan.
Italy has wielded its “Golden Power” in 2023, when Rome imposed curbs on tiremaker Pirelli & C. SpA’s largest investor, China’s Sinochem International Corp., to limit access to information from sensors in Pirelli tires.
Ministers in Meloni’s cabinet have taken differing stances in response to UniCredit’s bid for Banco BPM.
Matteo Salvini, one of Meloni’s deputies and also the leader of the anti-migration League party, has called UniCredit a foreign bank, while Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti has said Italy can wield special vetoes on deals and that the “Golden Power” facility gives Rome some options. By contrast, Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani, who heads the Forza Italia party, has said he doesn’t see a reason to use special powers against the deal. Meloni, who leads the coalition’s largest party, has staked out a position between her allies.
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Rome is also looking at French moves in its financial sector with concern, Bloomberg News has reported.
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