Banco Bpm flies to the Stock Exchange on Unicredit hypothesis, market cheers for merger

Seated in Piazza Affari for Banco Bpm. The title of the credit institution has torn the stock market on the press rumors according to which Unicredit is ready to present an integration offer, perhaps even a takeover bid. Analysts and investment houses were divided on the rationality of the operation, but the stock nevertheless closed the session with a jump of 9.80% to 3.55 euros per share. The direct interested parties have cooled the enthusiasm. The bank led by CEO Andrea Orcel “continues to evaluate all available strategic options” as part of its business and in line with the 2022-2024 Strategic Plan, a spokesperson said. Even if “no extraordinary meeting of the board of directors has been called”. And sources close to Banco Bpm confirmed that the institute in Piazza Meda “has not received any communication” from Unicredit regarding a possible integration offer. After filing the Mps dossier, Orcel a few days ago reiterated that any merger and acquisition operations must be “an accelerator” of Unicredit’s strategy and “must not derail our commitments to distribute capital to our shareholders”, with the ‘goal of remunerating shareholders with 16 billion euros by 2024. Giuseppe Castagna, CEO of Banco Bpm, had also explained that he did not see “merger opportunities at the moment” for his bank and that he was focused “on our numbers and on our strategic plan. ” Mediobanca Securities analysts underlined that “Unicredit shares rose by about 40% after the failure of the Mps negotiations, while those of Banco Bpm gained 20%”. A difference due to the fact that “the market has rewarded Unicredit’s new stand alone and cashback strategy”. The bank in Piazza Gae Aulenti “is ready for an upward revision of the rating” and “chiarame nte an outperformance compared to domestic competitors could open scenarios similar to the Intesa Sanpaolo-Ubi Banca merger with banks with a lower rating “. But for Vincenzo Longo, Premium manager of Ig, the main obstacle to an integration between Unicredit and Banco Bpm is “political”. If the government were to give the green light to this operation, it “would close the door to the best suitor for MPS” and would remain with the “hot potato” of the Sienese bank’s future in hand. The geographical meaning of the operation is also overestimated: between the two institutes “there is a clear geographical overlap”, particularly in the North and in Lombardy.