Latest news with #Giorgetti
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Italy Finance Minister says could quit as government splits on UniCredit
By Giuseppe Fonte and Angelo Amante ROME (Reuters) -Italian Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti said on Wednesday he would resign if he were overruled on "golden power" conditions the government has tied to UniCredit's bid for smaller bank Banco BPM. Giorgetti, from the hard-right League party, was speaking after reports in Italian newspapers, citing government sources, suggested that changes in the conditions were possible, but were being resisted by the minister. He told reporters in the Senate that without the full support of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on the issue he would quit immediately. "If there were the slightest misalignment (with Meloni) you wouldn't find a resignation threat, but the resignation itself. You don't announce your resignation, you do it," Giorgetti said. UniCredit's swoop on BPM, which derailed Rome's plans to combine BPM with state-backed Monte dei Paschi di Siena, is part of a wave of proposed takeover bids rocking Italian banking. In order to clear the deal, Meloni's administration has given UniCredit nine months to cease its activities in Russia and asked it not to reduce BPM's loan-to-deposit ratio for five years. The co-ruling Forza Italia party, led by Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, is pushing Meloni to ease these terms. Tajani replied "yes, absolutely," when asked by Reuters in parliament whether he was in favour of making the conditions on UniCredit less stringent. The party is being lobbied by Italian companies that are still relying on UniCredit to pursue their business activities in Russia, even though these have been much-reduced since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Tajani said he was defending some 270 Italian firms still working legitimately in Russia, and showed no willingness to compromise. "I am not going to take a step back for anybody," he said, adding that he wanted Cabinet to convene to reconsider the golden power conditions on the UniCredit bid. STAND-OFF Giorgetti is determined to maintain a hard-line on UniCredit after the government said it was protecting Rome's strategic interests by avoiding "even the slightest risk" of aiding Russia's economy where the bank operates. Meloni has not recently spoken publicly on the issue. Giorgetti said the government was focused on monitoring compliance with the golden power conditions, and its response to issues raised by both Banco BPM and UniCredit would be fully coordinated between the Treasury and Meloni's office. UniCredit has appealed to an administrative court against the terms set by the government, and its CEO Andrea Orcel said on Tuesday it could let the offer lapse because it was no longer financially advantageous under the conditions imposed. Banco BPM also said it would appeal to an administrative court against a decision by Italian market regulator Consob to suspend the buyout offer for 30 days, to give UniCredit time to negotiate the golden power terms with the government. "They all go to court in this country and things get messy," Giorgetti said. (writing by Alvise Armellini, editing by Gavin Jones) Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Italy Finance Minister says could quit as government splits on UniCredit
By Giuseppe Fonte and Angelo Amante ROME (Reuters) -Italian Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti said on Wednesday he would resign if he were overruled on "golden power" conditions the government has tied to UniCredit's bid for smaller bank Banco BPM. Giorgetti, from the hard-right League party, was speaking after reports in Italian newspapers, citing government sources, suggested that changes in the conditions were possible, but were being resisted by the minister. He told reporters in the Senate that without the full support of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on the issue he would quit immediately. "If there were the slightest misalignment (with Meloni) you wouldn't find a resignation threat, but the resignation itself. You don't announce your resignation, you do it," Giorgetti said. UniCredit's swoop on BPM, which derailed Rome's plans to combine BPM with state-backed Monte dei Paschi di Siena, is part of a wave of proposed takeover bids rocking Italian banking. In order to clear the deal, Meloni's administration has given UniCredit nine months to cease its activities in Russia and asked it not to reduce BPM's loan-to-deposit ratio for five years. The co-ruling Forza Italia party, led by Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, is pushing Meloni to ease these terms. Tajani replied "yes, absolutely," when asked by Reuters in parliament whether he was in favour of making the conditions on UniCredit less stringent. The party is being lobbied by Italian companies that are still relying on UniCredit to pursue their business activities in Russia, even though these have been much-reduced since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Tajani said he was defending some 270 Italian firms still working legitimately in Russia, and showed no willingness to compromise. "I am not going to take a step back for anybody," he said, adding that he wanted Cabinet to convene to reconsider the golden power conditions on the UniCredit bid. STAND-OFF Giorgetti is determined to maintain a hard-line on UniCredit after the government said it was protecting Rome's strategic interests by avoiding "even the slightest risk" of aiding Russia's economy where the bank operates. Meloni has not recently spoken publicly on the issue. Giorgetti said the government was focused on monitoring compliance with the golden power conditions, and its response to issues raised by both Banco BPM and UniCredit would be fully coordinated between the Treasury and Meloni's office. UniCredit has appealed to an administrative court against the terms set by the government, and its CEO Andrea Orcel said on Tuesday it could let the offer lapse because it was no longer financially advantageous under the conditions imposed. Banco BPM also said it would appeal to an administrative court against a decision by Italian market regulator Consob to suspend the buyout offer for 30 days, to give UniCredit time to negotiate the golden power terms with the government. "They all go to court in this country and things get messy," Giorgetti said. (writing by Alvise Armellini, editing by Gavin Jones) Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Reuters
17-04-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Italy may take 'golden power' decision on banks on Friday, minister says
ROME, April 17 (Reuters) - The Italian government may take decisions using its so-called "golden powers" to set conditions over bank takeovers at a cabinet meeting on Friday, Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti said. Giorgetti's comment, made at the launch of a business magazine in Rome on Thursday, comes as Italy's second largest bank UniCredit ( opens new tab prepares to launch a 14 billion-euro ($16 billion) all-share bid for smaller peer Banco BPM ( opens new tab. Asked if the cabinet would exercise its special powers to set conditions on takeovers regarding strategic sectors at Friday's meeting, Giorgetti replied: "maybe, we have deadlines that we need to respect." Rome is set to clear the UniCredit-Banco BPM transaction with binding conditions including a requirement that UniCredit exit its interests in Russia as soon as possible, a source close to the matter told Reuters on Wednesday. UniCredit is among only a handful of international banks that did not leave Russia after the onset of the Ukraine war in 2022, with CEO Andrea Orcel saying he refused to damage shareholders by exiting without a fair price for the assets. In an indirect reference to Orcel, Giorgetti said: "the difference between a minister and a banker is that the banker is rightly concerned with individual profit, while the minister has to act in the general interest, so it's natural that there is some conflict." UniCredit plans to launch its bid for Banco BPM on April 28, but it has reserved the right to wait until as late as June 30 to decide whether to waive the conditions that would currently allow it to withdraw.
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
U.S. policy on stablecoins more dangerous than tariffs, Italian minister says
By Giuseppe Fonte ROME (Reuters) - U.S. policy on stablecoins offers European citizens an attractive payment method for cross-border transactions which should trigger more concern than trade tariffs, Italy's economy minister said on Tuesday. Addressing an event in Milan on asset management, Giancarlo Giorgetti said European Union authorities should adopt further steps to boost the status of the euro as an international reference currency and complained about the fragmentation of the EU's payment industry. U.S. President Donald Trump has pledged to overhaul rules on cryptocurrencies and reverse a crackdown on the sector that took place under his predecessor Joe Biden. Dollar-pegged stablecoins, which are a type of cryptocurrencies designed to maintain a constant value, have ballooned in recent years. They now act as a key cog in the multi-trillion dollar crypto trading industry, helping move funds between different cryptocurrencies or into regular cash. "The general focus these days is on the impact of trade tariffs. However, even more dangerous is the new U.S. policy on cryptocurrencies and in particular that on dollar-denominated stablecoins," Giorgetti said. The minister argued that stablecoins would give savers the opportunity to invest in risk-free assets and a widely accepted means of payment for cross-border transactions, without any need for a banking account with U.S. banks. "It is therefore easy to foresee their attractiveness for citizens of economies with unstable currencies, but its appeal for people of the euro zone should not be underestimated," Giorgetti said. To promote European sovereignty in payments and protect the role of fiat currencies against the spread of stablecoins, the European Central Bank (ECB) is working on the so-called digital euro. The project envisages EU residents having digital euro accounts with the ECB which they can use for online payments or in shop, or to exchange money with friends thanks to the ECB partnering with EU-based payment services providers. "The digital euro will be essential to minimise the need for European citizens to resort to foreign solutions to access such a basic service as payment," Giorgetti said. European banks have expressed concerns that a digital euro would empty their coffers as customers transfer some of their cash to the safety of an ECB-guaranteed wallet. Sign in to access your portfolio
Reuters
15-04-2025
- Business
- Reuters
U.S. policy on stablecoins more dangerous than tariffs, Italian minister says
ROME, April 15 (Reuters) - U.S. policy on stablecoins offers European citizens an attractive payment method for cross-border transactions which should trigger more concern than trade tariffs, Italy's economy minister said on Tuesday. Addressing an event in Milan on asset management, Giancarlo Giorgetti said European Union authorities should adopt further steps to boost the status of the euro as an international reference currency and complained about the fragmentation of the EU's payment industry. U.S. President Donald Trump has pledged to overhaul rules on cryptocurrencies and reverse a crackdown on the sector that took place under his predecessor Joe Biden. Dollar-pegged stablecoins, which are a type of cryptocurrencies designed to maintain a constant value, have ballooned in recent years. They now act as a key cog in the multi-trillion dollar crypto trading industry, helping move funds between different cryptocurrencies or into regular cash. "The general focus these days is on the impact of trade tariffs. However, even more dangerous is the new U.S. policy on cryptocurrencies and in particular that on dollar-denominated stablecoins," Giorgetti said. The minister argued that stablecoins would give savers the opportunity to invest in risk-free assets and a widely accepted means of payment for cross-border transactions, without any need for a banking account with U.S. banks. "It is therefore easy to foresee their attractiveness for citizens of economies with unstable currencies, but its appeal for people of the euro zone should not be underestimated," Giorgetti said. To promote European sovereignty in payments and protect the role of fiat currencies against the spread of stablecoins, the European Central Bank (ECB) is working on the so-called digital euro. The project envisages EU residents having digital euro accounts with the ECB which they can use for online payments or in shop, or to exchange money with friends thanks to the ECB partnering with EU-based payment services providers. "The digital euro will be essential to minimise the need for European citizens to resort to foreign solutions to access such a basic service as payment," Giorgetti said. European banks have expressed concerns that a digital euro would empty their coffers as customers transfer some of their cash to the safety of an ECB-guaranteed wallet.
