Mps Shareholders' Meeting, Delfin in the field with full shares

Delfin, the first shareholder of Mps with 17.5 per cent, will be present at the 15 April assembly of Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena. According to what was reported to Il Sole 24 Ore by authoritative sources, the financial company led by Francesco Milleri deposited shares in view of the meeting. This is a significant step and not taken for granted, considering that in recent weeks the holding company headed by the Del Vecchio family would have carefully considered, according to some sources, the possibility of defecting from the shareholders' meeting as it is critical of some strategic choices, including that of excluding the former ad Luigi Lovaglio from the board list, a manager who enjoys Milleri's esteem.

Delfin's presence at the shareholders' meeting, therefore, opens up new scenarios. And thus heralds a full turnout in Siena, probably close to if not over 70 per cent, with its first shareholder destined to become, together with the market, the needle of the scales in the game that will redraw the bank's governance. At stake is the choice between the two majority lists: that of the board of directors, which is nominating Fabrizio Palermo as its head, and that of Plt Holding, which is nominating Lovaglio himself as its operational guide, i.e. the manager who has restored Mps's health and led it in the takeover bid for Mediobanca.

The appointment with Mps' big shareholders comes after the proxy advisors Iss and Glass Lewis endorsed the board's list over the past week. Both suggested that Mps shareholders vote for the list proposed by the outgoing board, starting with the candidates for ceo, Fabrizio Palermo, and chairman, Nicola Maione. The board's list was preferred to the one promoted by Plt Holding, which is headed by the Tortora family, but at the same time, the proxy advisor came up with a suggestion to shareholders: a selective vote on individual candidates in the second meeting passage. An articulate position that has ended up attracting criticism from both sides of the field. On Tuesday, it was Siena's board that defended its own list: in a letter sent to shareholders, the bank contested Iss's suggestions and called for support for profiles (excluded instead by the proxy) such as chairman Nicola Maione and appointments committee chairman Domenico Lombardi. Then it was the turn of Luigi Lovaglio. Who, in an interview with Bloomberg TV, said he was 'confident' that he could get a new mandate and that he believed 'strongly that continuity and execution are crucial at this stage'.

Despite the 'recommendation' of the proxy advisors, the final outcome of the vote is judged by many observers as not entirely foregone.

The estimate, as mentioned, is a turnout of around 70% in light of Delfin's decision to deposit its shares and thus its 17.5%. According to reports in financial circles, Delfin has not yet decided how to vote. According to some, abstention could eventually prevail, but twists and turns are not excluded. Instead, the Mef, holder of 4.8% and by now close to leaving, will not be present. Instead, the entrepreneur Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone, who holds 11.5% but has been given a further rise in recent weeks, will vote for the board of directors' list. And together with him, the Benettons (1.4%) and the Mediolanum funds (1%) could support the same list, as well as Enpam (0.3%) and potentially Enasarco (1.15%). This is, therefore, about 15% of the capital. Missing from the list are the 3.8% preferences of Banco Bpm, which if it were to support the board of directors would raise the starting consensus around the outgoing board of directors' list close to 20%. On the Plt Holding front, the list starts from 1.2%, to which could be added the share of the entrepreneur Girondi, given close to 3% although he had deposited about 1% at the last shareholders' meeting in February. Delfin's support would create 'parity' at the outset, but according to many observers, the finance company is unlikely to openly oppose the board of directors' list; rather, as mentioned, abstention seems more likely. Everything will therefore be played out on the consensus of the major shareholder funds, starting with Blackrock (5%), Vanguard (3%) and Norges (3%) and the rest of the market.