Ultimatum by Mediobanca to Generali: by August 6, the Lion will have to decide on the potential distribution agreement between the parties in view of the possible positive outcome of the offer launched on General Bankingi. It reveals the Sun 24 Hours, according to which this would be the content of the letter signed by Alberto Nagel and Renato Pagliaro, respectively CEO and president of Mediobanca, which would have arrived at the Generali board meeting in recent days.
On August 6th, Generali will meet with its board of directors to approve the first-half financial statements.
Mediobanca and the distribution agreement with Generali
Mediobanca's offer of over 6 billion on Banca Generali had as its counterpart Generali shares owned by Piazzetta Cuccia, equal to 13,02% of the capital. Among the conditions of the offer were reaching a minimum threshold of 50% of the capital plus one share, the completion of collaboration agreements with Generali and Banca Generali, and “the assumption by Generali of a commitment on the treasury shares received as consideration for a 12-month lock-up period starting from the completion of the offer, with regard to offerings and placements with the general public”.
The distribution contract was one of the most important pieces of the offer and one of the reasons why, among other things, the institute had decided to postpone the meeting to September 25th initially convened on June 16th to receive shareholders' approval for the offer on Banca Generali. As recalled by Sun 24 Hours, in a press release issued at that time, Piazzetta Cuccia had highlighted the need expressed by some shareholders holding shares in both the institute and the insurance company (Caltagirone, ed.) "to know Generali's assessments and orientation with respect to the proposal in order to be able to express their opinion at the Mediobanca meeting, also considering that Assicurazioni Generali's participation is essential for the completion of the operation". Since then, the parties have evidently continued to work on the dossier but now, thanks to the summer break which in August "freezes" all the ongoing processes, it is request for acceleration.
Milleri: "MPS's offer is attractive, but even more so with adjustments."
Meanwhile, MPS's offer for Mediobanca continues, which, according to the CEO of EssilorLuxottica and president of Delfin, Francesco Milleri, “it's very interesting”.
"A possible adjustment that reflects the trend of stock prices would make the offer more attractive to investors,” Milleri said in an interview with Corriere della Sera"We are in the midst of a banking risk game that would be better described as the natural development of a market that has been stagnant for too long," observed Delfin's CEO, the largest shareholder in Piazzetta Cuccia and also a partner in Monte dei Paschi.
“I don't know if all the changes will be right, but what I've learned over the years with Leonardo Del Vecchio is that if you want to improve, you have to change,” he added.
As regards the share in Generali"We consolidated our position by completing the authorization process in the two EU jurisdictions that were missing to remain above 10% of the company, a figure that we exceeded following the buyback operations," the manager explained. "I don't believe," he specified, "there are many non-banking or financial companies that have achieved a similar result." Asked about the investment in Unicredit, Milleri replied: "We will continue to monitor the values and weigh capital gains and opportunities, like any good manager."
