“Buying shares Camfin by Laura 61 and the purchase of Pirelli shares by Malacalza are two separate operations”. Camfin's offer "was decided regardless of Malacalza's adhesion" and there was no "agreement to influence the price". This is what can be read in a note from Lauro 61 regarding some press rumors on Consob's request for clarifications to Lauro 61 itself, Mtp spa and Unicredit regarding some alleged critical issues in the formation of the price of the takeover bid launched on Camfin at €0,80 per share.
The company confirms that it has replied to Consob "with factual elements that demonstrate beyond any doubt the correctness of the tender offer in every respect and the absolute absence of any profile of alleged criticality".' Lauro 61, therefore, "believes that a modification of the offer price cannot in any way be hypothesized, since neither the conditions nor the reasons exist".
The promoters of the offer underline that the reorganization operation and the takeover bid were set up "from the outset", also from a financial point of view and in terms of the valuation of Camfin, "without any involvement of Malacalza Investimenti and, indeed, in view of its potentially hostile position, regardless of the latter".
According to Lauro's shareholders, the price of 0,80 euro per share was set "at an unsuspecting time", ie when the agreement with Malacalza (the one on Gpi and Camfin shares) had not yet been reached. From the outset, therefore, the operation envisaged the purchase of a significant package of Camfin and the launch of a takeover bid at the same price.
On the other hand, sources close to Consob itself have specified that “to date there is no formal contestation of the price of the takeover bid on Camfin. The investigations started on the Camfin-Pirelli operation are still underway, and will be concluded in times compatible with the takeover bid in progress". The offer will end on September 13th.
Lauro then insists on the "total" separation of the Camfin operations (the reorganization with the exit of the Malacalzas) and Pirelli (the entry of the Genoese into the tire group with almost 7%). The two agreements “have no negotiating interdependence – reads the note -. In fact, the hypothesis that Mtp and Unicredit could have forced the decision-making bodies of two subjects such as Allianz and FonSai to sell Pirelli shares at a price that they do not consider reasonable or advantageous is unlikely, as well as lacking documentary evidence. Moreover, Consob itself recognizes that Allianz and Fonsai acted independently and according to their own assessments of economic convenience and certainly not as intermediaries of Mtp and Unicredit. It also appears that no transfer of utilities or benefits of any kind has taken place in favor of Allianz or Fonsai by Lauro 61 or any of its shareholders".
