Poste, Giorgetti: 'The State will retain control, in the early stages government could stop at 51%'
The Minister of the Economy spoke at a hearing before the Budget and Transport Committees of the Chamber of Deputies and the Economic Planning, Finance and Environment Committees of the Senate on the sale of a stake held by the MEF in the capital of Poste Italiane
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Key points
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"The sale of a stake held by the MEF in Poste Italiane will not result in the loss of control over the company, which will continue to be exercised by the State. Moreover, Poste's bylaws state that no party other than the MEF, public entities, or entities controlled by them may hold more than 5 per cent of the company's capital'. So said Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti at a hearing before the Budget and Transport Committees of the House and Senate on the Poste privatisation decree. "In light of the forecast updating that will be carried out shortly with the publication of the Def,' he added, 'we will assess the advisability of modifying the planned timeframe to achieve a debt-to-GDP ratio profile consistent with the programmatic commitments already established.
Giorgetti: in the early stages we could stop at 51% Poste
The minister explained that the alienation of the shareholding that could bring the state up to '35%' of the group could take place 'even in stages', which 'means that in the first stages the government could also stop at 51%, because we consider this to be a satisfactory level with respect to the indicated path'.
Post Office disposal when maximising revenue
The minister explained that 'the Mef will carry out the operation' of alienating a stake in Poste 'at the most appropriate time to maximise the revenue achievable, trying to reconcile market conditions with public finance requirements'.
Multi-stage operation, status check
.In particular, 'the divestment operation represented in the Dpcm currently before Parliament must be considered a framework that identifies a minimum value of the State's participation, which can be achieved progressively and in stages, so as to safeguard the public strategic control over this asset'.
Posts could improve debt attractiveness
According to the Minister of the Economy, 'in a more general framework, it is also appropriate to consider the effects of the operation on the confidence of domestic and foreign institutional investors towards Italy, which could result in an improvement in the attractiveness of the public debt, with consequent positive effects in terms of reducing the spread and the cost of debt'.
