Banca Popolare di Milano (BPM)
CEO Giuseppe Castagna said Thursday a merger with Banco Popolare
will not result in any spinoffs. "We are not obligated to make
any sales," he told reporters. "Obviously there will be some
rationalizing," he added. "It's possible to find some synergies
and through them it will be possible to value some of these
assets, including externally, and in ways we will invent while
coming up with an industrial plan". Castagna added BPM is not
considering any other mergers. "We face a burdensome task," he
said. "Right now we're concentrating on this merger". The
European Central Bank (ECB) gave an informal OK to the merger
Wednesday but said it wanted a strong capital position for the
new group as a key condition for its final approval. The merger
needs to create a new group with a strong position in terms of
capital and asset quality right from the start as it would
become the third-largest bank in Italy, the ECB said in a letter
to BPM. The ECB also set as conditions a multi-annual industrial
plan and a clear and efficient system of governance.
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