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Investing.com -- Banca Monte dei Paschi (BIT:BMPS) announced on Wednesday that it has received approval from the European Central Bank (ECB) to move forward with acquiring a controlling stake in Mediobanca (BIT:MDBI).
The authorization covers the purchase of a direct holding in the Italian investment bank, which exceeds 10% of Monte dei Paschi’s consolidated own funds, as well as related indirect shareholdings.
As part of the regulatory requirements, Monte dei Paschi must submit a detailed timeline for integration activities and a governance structure to oversee the process within six months of taking control of Mediobanca.
The announcement follows Monte dei Paschi’s confirmation in May that it was on track with its all-share offer for Mediobanca. The deal, unveiled in January, valued the investment bank at €13.3 billion ($15.44 billion) at launch.
The move came shortly after the Italian government sold a stake in Mediobanca in November to a consortium of domestic investors, including the Del Vecchio and Caltagirone families, both prominent shareholders in the bank.
At current market prices, MPS has a valuation of €9.32 billion ($10.8 billion), according to Yahoo Finance data. Mediobanca’s market capitalization is more than €16 billion—well above the €14.6 billion price tag attached to MPS’ all-share proposal.
UniCredit CEO Andrea Orcel walked away from a potential acquisition of Monte dei Paschi (MPS) in 2021, opting instead to make a bid for Banco BPM in November, a move that disrupted government efforts to engineer a merger between MPS and BPM.
Italy had invested €5.4 billion in 2017 to bail out MPS and prevent a broader banking crisis, and had hoped that its eventual reprivatisation would contribute to the formation of a strong third pillar in the national banking sector.
MPS now holds billions of euros in surplus capital above regulatory requirements, which could be partially used to add a cash component to its bid once the process moves forward.
Like many Italian lenders, MPS has seen a sharp increase in profits on the back of rising interest rates. It has also gained from favorable court decisions that allowed the release of funds previously set aside for legal contingencies