Cassa Depositi e Prestiti sells the entire shareholding of 17,5% held by its subsidiary Cdp Equity in the capital of BF (ex Ferrarese reclamation), the main Italian agricultural company listed on Piazza Affari. As for buyers, 5,5% of BF is taken over by Arum and 6% from Dompè Holdings (both companies are already shareholders of BF, respectively with 14,3% and 14%), while the remaining 6% will be placed with other investors in the coming weeks (a put option is envisaged by CdpE which can be exercised within November 2022 against Arum).
Ferraresi reclamation operation in line with the CDP strategic plan
CDP underlines in a note that “the operation is in line with the 2022-24 Strategic Plan and in particular with the principle of capital rotation, i.e. the evaluation of potential options for rationalizing the existing investment portfolio once the objectives of the intervention in the capital have been achieved, also in order to support new initiatives with the available resources”.
The entry of CdpE into the capital of BF "had taken place in 2017 - continues the note - to promote the dissemination of precision agriculture techniques and the consolidation of the sector by promoting the creation of an operator capable of performing the role of aggregator in the production chain".
Last November in the capital of Bonifiche Ferraresi Eni and Intesa had entered.
From Cdp 40 million to the Italian Agritech&Food Fund
The agri-food sector, "even more so in the current post-pandemic economic and social context, still remains strategic for the Cdp Group - writes Cassa Depositi e Prestiti - For this reason, the CdpE has approved the investment of 40 million in the Italian Agritech&Food Fund (FA&F), managed by the subsidiary Fondo Italiano d'Investimento SGR. In this operation, CdpE has BF Spa itself at its side, which contributed to the FA&F project with a subscription of 60 million".
Furthermore, “the CDP Foundation has expressed an interest in support the redevelopment project of the former tobacco factory in Naples, which envisages the creation of an agritech pole for the development of technologies in the agri-food sector - concludes the note - Finally, it should be noted that always in Campania CDP Venture Capital, the CDP group company that supports start-ups with high development potential, will launch in the coming months two new technology transfer poles, one of which is dedicated toagritech".
