Asset management, AAA looking for a good Anima for the Italian pole
A new possible partner for Generali Investments in place of the French Natixis. If it does not go through with Intesa Sanpaolo's asset management, it could be Anima's turn
Key points
What happens if the agreement between Natixis and Generali Investments falls through? This is the question that investment bankers and consultants have been asking themselves since the day after Mps' successful takeover of Mediobanca.
For the market, the Italo-French agreement is in fact considered to be dead in the water, barring any twists and turns. On the market, however, there are persistent rumours of a possible plan B, or rather the possibility that the asset management pole headed by Intesa Sanpaolo will take the place of Natixis. And although on Monday there was a denial by Tommaso Corcos, head of wealth management divisions at Intesa Sanpaolo ("There are no operations on the table"), this alternative on Natixis' replacement in the asset management agreement with Generali remains strong.
Anima Hypothesis
.Meanwhile, advisors continue to develop alternative hypotheses on the future national champion of Italian asset management. And, according to rumours, there is already another potential partner for Generali Investments. It is Anima, a management company, now in the Banco Bpm group, which has assets of 200 billion euro: even in this case, adding up the assets under management, it would be just under a thousand billion euro, the threshold needed to enter the elite of international asset management companies.
The possible investiture as ceo of Mediobanca of Anima's current number one, Alessandro Melzi d'Eril, certainly does not seem to stand in the way of this hypothesis.
Finally, the potential political consensus for the possible marriage should be underlined. The wedding between Piazzetta Cuccia and Rocca Salimbeni has been blessed by the Meloni government: a national champion of asset management would certainly have the viaticum from Rome for both scenarios described (Intesa or Anima). The third wheel at the moment is Credit Agricole, which is very interested in Banco Bpm and its asset management. Finally, according to rumours, the scenarios outlined should in any case exclude the entire insurance sector.
