Intesa prevé lanzar su opa sobre MPS a finales de este mes

Intesa Sanpaolo, Italy's largest bank by assets with over €992 billion in assets, plans to launch its €33 billion bid offer for rival Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena (MPS) before the end of November, according to Bloomberg citing informed sources. The bank anticipates initiating the offer during the week of November 23rd, as per these sources who requested anonymity due to the plans not yet being public.

The timeline may still undergo changes. An Intesa spokesperson declined to provide any comments. The larger Italian bank received its final regulatory approvals on October 28th, triggering a 10-day period for the supervisory body, the Consob, to approve the bid prospectus. Upon obtaining the authorization, Intesa will be able to publish the document and open the acceptance period.

Competitor approval is still pending, although it is not a prerequisite to launch the bid. Intesa CEO Carlo Messina remains committed to his plan despite Monte Paschi shareholders rejecting an alternative strategy last week. Luigi Lovaglio, CEO of MPS, had proposed acquiring Banco BPM and Banca Generali, but over 90% of the votes cast were against both transactions.

The rejection of the MPS plan was "clear and by a significant margin," Messina stated on Friday. "There was an absolute consensus to proceed with our offer," he added. Critical were the votes of Delfin and Caltagirone, the two largest shareholders. If Intesa's bid succeeds, it would reshape Italy's financial landscape, allowing Messina to gain control of Paschi, Mediobanca -of which the Tuscan entity holds approximately 86% - and acquire a stake of nearly 13% in Assicurazioni Generali.