Mps could sell Antonveneta to Ubi Banca, to then sell a substantial package of non-performing loans to the Atlante fund and finally proceed with a new capital increase (on which it is not excluded that the Treasury could offer a guarantee). These would be the three phases of the new plan to save Monte dei Paschi di Siena, which the ECB has asked to define within the month a plan for the sale of an additional 10 billion in non-performing loans. Furthermore, by the end of the month, the Bank is expected to have two more appointments: the stress tests by the European Banking Authority and the approval of the half-year accounts.
As for the transfer of Antonveneta, Corriere della Sera reports that the CEO of Ubi Victor Massiah, after refusing to take charge of the entire Sienese group, could accept the project to expand his own institution, which missed the purchase of Popolare di Milano, finished at Banco Popolare. For his part, Mps would be able to raise cash and get rid of a part of the bad debts that burden his accounts, also making Atlante's intervention less expensive and more incisive.
Mediobanca, advisor to Mps, calculates that the sale of 10 billion non-performing loans could lead to a capital increase for Monte from 1 to 4 billion, depending on the sale price of those loans, entered in the balance sheet at a value of 36%. If the disposal of Antonveneta goes through, however, Monte's need to lighten difficult loans would be reduced to around 5 billion, halving Atlante's commitment, which seems to be struggling more than expected to raise new funds from the banks.
