Intesa Sanpaolo has obtained the approval from Italian antitrust regulator for the takeover of its $4bn acquisition of local rival UBI Banca.
Italian Competition Authority (AGCM) said that Intesa’s pledge to offload 532 branches to another rival BPER Banca was enough to address the concerns surrounding the acquisition.
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According to Reuters, Intesa CEO Carlo Messina in a note said: “This is a fundamental milestone. UBI shareholders now have all of the essential information needed to evaluate our offer and make their choice.”
To secure the nod, Intesa also agreed to sell an additional 17 branches to a different bank within nine months, if necessary.
The AGCM demanded that Intesa must sell its own branches if it is unable to sell UBI branches post-acquisition. Intesa agreed to comply with all the demands.
Intesa had unveiled an all-paper exchange offer for the hostile takeover of its smaller rival to create the seventh-largest banking group in Eurozone.
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By GlobalDataThe bid was formally launched on 6 July with a closing date of 28 July.
As per the proposal, Intesa offered 1.7 new shares for each UBI share to the bank’s shareholders.
However, earlier this month, UBI Banca’s board unanimously rejected the takeover bid citing that the bid is “inadequate” and added that it does not reflect its “fundamental value”.
Intesa first launched the €4.9bn takeover bid to acquire UBI Banca in February.
Last month, the Italian lender secured the green light from the European Central Bank (ECB) for the acquisition.
In the same month, Intesa revised its deal terms with local rival BPER Banca to clear antitrust hurdles for the UBI Banca acquisition. Intesa also secured the market regulator nod.
Recently, Italy’s insurance company Cattolica Assicurazioni agreed to tender all its UBI Banca shares to Intesa’s takeover bid.
These shares are part of the 19% stakes held by the shareholders of the bank, who had rejected the bid.
