Italian court defers UniCredit appeal over Banco BPM bid terms to July 9, source says
ROME - An Italian court on Wednesday postponed its decision to July 9 on UniCredit's appeal against government-imposed conditions on its takeover bid for rival Banco BPM, a source with knowledge of the matter said.
UniCredit withdrew its request to suspend the government's decision ahead of the ruling, leading the court to forego deliberations on the matter.
UniCredit said in a statement it had dropped the request for interim measures to ease discussions with the economy ministry.
The Italian government has invoked its "golden powers" to impose strict conditions on UniCredit's offer for Banco BPM, citing national security concerns. UniCredit has argued that these conditions cannot be met and could force it to drop the deal.
The lender has secured a one-month extension to the bid's deadline, now set for July 23 instead of June 23, as it continues talks with the government.
The Italian Treasury has said it stands by its decision on the grounds of protecting a strategic asset and has rejected the bank's complaints, a position that could create tensions with the European Commission.
UniCredit filed a complaint against the executive's decision with the administrative court of Rome's Lazio Region. In such cases, the court can grant a suspension pending a ruling to uphold or void the actual decision.
However, during Wednesday's closed-door hearing, the bank withdrew its request for a suspension ahead of the July 9 decision, the source said.
As part of the terms UniCredit must end deposits and loans to Russian clients within nine months.
UniCredit must also keep Banco BPM's loan-to-deposit ratio unchanged for five years post-acquisition. Additionally, the government has stipulated that UniCredit must not reduce Banco BPM's holdings of Italian securities tied to Anima Holding, a fund manager recently acquired by Banco BPM.
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