Banca Popolare di Milano wants to repay the Tremonti Bonds as soon as possible. This was stated by the president of the institute, Andrea Bonomi, on the sidelines of a conference.
"It is a matter of honour – said Bonomi – The fact that a bank has to ask the state for money is wrong from the point of view of the institution's prestige”. The repayment of the bonds is linked to the removal of the prudential requirements imposed by the Bank of Italy which weigh on the capital ratios of the group.
Bpm also approved a capital increase of the equivalent amount of 500 million euro, an increase that the president is confident of completing. “We have a pre-underwriting agreement with leading banks” said Bonomi. The hypothesis is that Investindustrial, the private equity fund led by Bonomi and main shareholder of Bpm, could increase its stake in the bank. The president said he does not know what Investindustrial will do and that the important thing "is that it remains a bank with widespread shareholders, close to the territory and not close to one shareholder rather than another". Bonomi also assured that Bpm will continue its path towards modernization and transparency and that, with regard to the new governance, the "requests of the shareholders" will be listened to.
