Fonsai falls on the Stock Exchange following the Antitrust stop on the integration with Unipol: the share drops almost 3% after a start-up down by 4,66%, Premafin drops more than 4% while Unipol even moves slightly positive territory at +0%. On the other hand, Mediobanca, the director of the Fonsai Unipol union, yields 66%, but itself among the main obstacles identified by the Authority for the operation: the lighthouse is on the financial, equity and personal ties that will be determined between Mediobanca and the Unipol-Premafin group being Mediobanca at the same time the largest shareholder of Generali. In Trieste, where the shareholders meet tomorrow for the annual meeting, the Lion has always formally kept a distance from the operation but in the light of these ties, also Generali, and not only Piazzetta Cuccia, ended up in the proceeding initiated by the Authority . Too many plots and interests, which do not help the competition if you think that the large Unipol would be the first operator in the non-life business and Generali the second. Not only the risks could also be in the Life branch.
Mediobanca and Unicredit are now studying the papers to find a way out of the stop and to understand the room for manoeuvre. The guided Antitrust has in fact suspended the operation, the implementation of the merger phase as well as any activity or resolution functional to the same. In short, a totally stationary ball. Even on exchanges. A decision taken to prevent the next steps of the operation from having effects that are difficult to reverse on the capital of the companies involved, not only with respect to a possible ban, but also with reference to a possible authorization with measures". Because the final verdict of the Antitrust could turn out to be so cumbersome as to call into question the economic relations of the union. "The 45 days required" by the Antitrust "are consistent with the capital increase feasible in June", commented the CEO of Mediobanca, Alberto Nagel. "We will comply, we will carry out the preliminary investigation with them, to go on the market and raise the necessary capital to adjust the ratios of the current company". But the investigation could last up to 75 days if we add up the 30 days available for Isvap to express its assessments on the Antitrust report.
An assist to the Arpe-Meneguzzo axis who, despite the various closed doors they met several times, repeatedly repeated that anything could happen between now and the merger. And in fact the twist came because it is only the third time in 22 years that the Antitrust has recourse to article 17 of the law which instituted it. Also because at the basis of the stop are precisely the two fundamental nodes ridden by Arpe-Meneguzzo in their complaint presented to the Antitrust at the beginning of April where, as reported by Corriere della Sera, the critical issues of the operation were highlighted both from the point of in view of the future concentration in the non-life and motor liability sectors both for the double role of Mediobanca and then of Unicredit, lending banks and directors of the merger. On the other hand, some time ago Francesco Paparella, president of the Italian association of insurance and reinsurance brokers, underlined in Firstonline that the Unipol-Fonsai merger does not benefit users: "it greatly restricts the non-life market and does not seem to us a harbinger of benefits for the user. In Europe the market is much larger in terms of number of operators and we are moving towards an even higher concentration”, commented Paparella.
One piece of news is that of the stop by the Antitrust which falls like a boulder on today's board of directors of Fonsai in which the negotiations on the exchanges and on that of the afternoon of Premafin should have been discussed. Which at the moment would be the most at risk. In fact, among the activities necessary for the merger there would also be the restructuring of the Premafin debt and the entry of Unipol into the capital of the holding company through the reserved capital increase of 400 million. Operations which, if they were to fail, would jeopardize Premafin's business continuity. On the Fonsai side, despite the threat of receivership by Isvap which has so far been avoided thanks to the integration plan with Unipol and the complications on the front of the investigations by the judiciary, there are those who now hypothesize that under the current conditions the way could be opened for the stand alone capital increase. Meanwhile, Fonsai's presidency was partially completed by the change in presidency on which many had been pushing for some time, including Unicredit: yesterday's board of directors appointed Cosimo Rucellai to the presidency while Jonella Ligresti remains as deputy together with Massimo Pini .
