Mps-Mediobanca, Prosecutor Viola at the Banking Commission: 'unity of intent' Delfin-Caltagirone to get Generali
Viola reconstructed an alleged concert between Delfin and Caltagirone that had been operating 'since 2019', through 'absolutely parallel conducts' maintained over time
Key points
The takeover bid launched by Monte dei Paschi di Siena (Mps) on Mediobanca was, according to the Milan Public Prosecutor's Office, a key step in a broader strategy: to allow Delfin and the Caltagirone group to achieve 'control, in the form of dominant influence, of Mediobanca' and, through the merchant bank, 'control of Generali'.
This was stated by Milan Prosecutor Marcello Viola, speaking at a hearing before the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry into the banking, financial and insurance system.
"Concert operative from 2019": parallel purchases, votes and appointments
Viola reconstructed an alleged concert between Delfin and Caltagirone that would have been operational 'since 2019', through 'absolutely parallel conducts' maintained over time: from the acquisition of shares - both in Generali and Mediobanca - to the exercise of votes in shareholders' meetings and the 'contextual recruitment and divestment of corporate offices'.
According to the Public Prosecutor's Office, the central point would also be an issue of transparency towards the market: the operation would have had the effect of concealing the existence of shareholders' agreements between significant shareholders of Mediobanca, with potentially significant consequences for the balance of governance.
Between 2024 and 2025 the 'different strategy': the axis with Mps
Still at the hearing, Viola added that the 'failure of the intention' would have prompted the suspects - this is the Prosecutor's assumption - to adopt a different strategy: to aim for control of Mediobanca functionally to the objective on Generali by involving Mps.
