Bank Ifis bought from Banca Popolare di Vicenza 70,77% of Farbanca SpA held in liquidation. The remaining 29,23% of the capital is in the hands of 450 small shareholders, mainly pharmacists. The transaction price of 32,5 million euro, but could be reduced following the price adjustment foreseen in the contract. This is the first deal concluded by Banca Ifis after the generational handover at the top of the financial company La Scogliera from Sebastiano Furstemberg to Ernesto Furstenberg Fassio, who represent the controlling shareholder of the Venetian bank.
"The closing is subject to the release of the necessary legal authorizations by the Authorities", reads a note. Together with the signing of the contract, the payment of a deposit equal to 15% of the consideration is required.
With this operation, Banca Ifis will reach over 4.700 customer pharmacies and a 26% market share, thanks to the combination of Credifarma (nearly 2.800 customer pharmacies) and Farbanca (about 1.900 customer pharmacies). Thus it was born the first operator in financial services to pharmacies.
"Announcing the acquisition of Farbanca in such a complex period - declared the president of Banca Ifis, Sebastiano Egon von Furstenberg - is even more important and represents a sign of confidence in our country and the confirmation that in difficult times there are growth opportunities” that the bank wants to seize.
“The transaction has a strong strategic value – he commented in turn Luciano Colombini, managing director of Banca Ifis – because it allows us to consolidate our market position in financing pharmacies and to achieve important synergies with the subsidiary Credifarma, creating the leading specialized pole in the sector in Italy. The operation has a solid industrial rationale. We will offer the world of pharmacies a complete range of customized solutions in factoring, leasing, short-term financing, mortgages and insurance policies also through the digital channel".
Farbank closed 2019 with a net profit of 4,1 million euros and loans to customers of around 598 million euros. As at 31 December 2019, shareholders' equity was €65,5 million, Cet1 was 16% and risk-weighted assets (RWA) were €409,9 million. As at 31 December 2019, Farbanca has an efficient and streamlined operating structure with a cost/income ratio of 43,5% and 36 employees.
The estimated impact on the Cet1 it's about 21 basis points.
