The Milan prosecutor's office has ordered house arrest for Massimo Ponzellini. The former president of Bpm and current number one of Impregilo is accused of criminal association aimed at multiple crimes: corruption, private corruption, embezzlement, violation of the prohibition of bank representatives to contract bonds, issuing invoices for non-existent transactions, money laundering. Ponzellini would have ended up in the crosshairs of the investigators above all for the loans granted to companies attributable to the fugitive Francesco Corallo. In particular, the suspicions would focus on a 148 million loan in favor of the company Atlantis
The precautionary custody order was signed by the Gip Cristina Censo at the request of the deputy prosecutors of Miano Roberto Pellicano and Mauro Clerici. According to the prosecution's hypothesis, illicit loans were disbursed also thanks to the falsification of the evaluation procedures of the Bank's bodies. The directors of the companies that benefited from the loans would have paid and promised sums of money, quantifiable at around 5,7 million euros.
According to reports on the website of the newspaper La Repubblica, the suspects also include Enzo Chiesa, former general manager of Bpm, and Marco Milanese, former right-hand man of former Economy Minister Giulio Tremonti. Under house arrest also for Antonio Cannalire, business partner with Corallo.
Bpm announced in a note that "at the moment and according to the information available, it is believed that the affair will not have economic repercussions on the Bank". Indeed, the institution considers itself an “offended party”. At the beginning of the afternoon, however, Bpm's stock lost almost 12 points, well behind the Ftse Mib.
