Il generational change in the companies it is always a key factor for the survival of the company. For them Small and medium-sized businesses it is perhaps even more so. From a study byScouting Capital Advisors Research Office it emerges that the capital of Italian companies is concentrated in the hands of a the majority shareholder, which for about a third he is over 65 years old and for the majority of cases is the Sole Director and/or President of the Board of Directors.
The results of the study “confirm the predominantly family nature of the Italian SME, highlighting the need to manage the generational change and adopt market solutions such as mergers and acquisitions, stock market listings or internal reorganisations, to make the most of the company's assets" he says Giuseppe Pelliccioni, Managing Director of Scouting Capital Advisors. “At the same time, the family nature calls into question issues of protection, typical of Family Offices, of the value created over the years for the benefit of subsequent generations”.
The majority of the sample was made up of SMEs, with the legal form of LLC
And let's get to the detail. The study selected joint-stock companies with available 2022 financial statements, with revenues between 10 million euros and 300 million, excluding those operating in the construction and financial services sectors: the survey sample it is thus represented by 35.785 companies. Most of the sample is made up of SMEs (over 50% is in fact represented by companies with a turnover between 10 and 20 million euros), with a preference for the legal form of SRL (66%).
In this sample, companies that have a sole shareholder which holds over 50% of the share capital represent 69,5%, which means that approximately 7 out of 10 companies have ownership concentrated in the hands of a single counterparty. Among these SMEs it is interesting to note that, differently from what one might think, the incidence of companies with ownership concentrated in the hands of a single counterparty increases as the size of the company increases.
In 95% of cases the majority is held either by a single person physical person (30,3%) or through a corporate vehicle (64,1%), often of foreign law. The presence of a corporate vehicle, as expected, progressively increases as the size of the company increases.
In command: over 65 with peak positions
And we come to those who are in charge. The natural persons which have a share greater than 50%, it turns out that for a third is over 65 years old, which highlights a potential management issue for the generational change. Furthermore, the study says, it must be taken into account that of these natural persons, approximately 63% hold one carica within the company as Sole Director and/or Chairman of the Board of Directors.
“The majority of the companies analyzed show ownership concentrated in the hands of a single counterparty, with a prevalence of SMEs and LLCs” summarizes Filippo Bratta, Managing Partner of Scouting Capital Advisors. “This concentration of ownership increases with company size: in 95% of cases, the majority is held by a single natural person or through a corporate vehicle, often under foreign law, the use of which increases with company size. Individuals with shares above 50% are largely elderly and occupy leadership positions within companies."
