Lovaglio (Mps): 'Go ahead with the plan, without M&A capital goes back to the shareholders'
The CEO of Banca Mps opens up the possibility of returning excess capital to Monte's shareholders, should no M&A hypothesis take hold
by R.Fi.
The CEO of Banca Mps, Luigi Lovaglio, is shooting straight. Despite the tensions related to governance, the banker confirms his desire not to change the integration plan with Mediobanca already presented to the market.
"What I think is really important for the market and investors is that this plan is fully operational. It is solid, and it is well constructed from a strategic point of view. It is something that is very difficult to change,' Lovaglio said during the Morgan Stanley European Financials Conference.
Careful line
On the governance front, and in particular on the non-inclusion of his name in the list of candidates for the board of directors for the next three years, Lovaglio prefers not to expose himself: 'There is a governance process underway on which I cannot comment. However, I can reiterate that the plan is fully operational, solid both strategically and operationally, financially robust, and includes EUR 16 billion in shareholder remuneration,' the banker said in response to an analyst who asked him to clarify the governance situation for international investors.
Capital Outlay
Lovaglio then opened the door to the possibility of returning the excess capital to Monte's shareholders, should no M&A scenario take hold. "We monitor all market opportunities to create value. It is clear that we cannot maintain this level of capital forever and we will have to move in a relatively short time horizon'.
"The next 12 months will be very important for us," he added, pointing out that "if there are no opportunities, it would clearly make a lot of sense to remunerate shareholders better".
