(Bloomberg) — Two of Italy’s most prominent billionaire clans are emerging as key power brokers in the biggest reshaping of the country’s banking industry for more than a decade.
The Del Vecchios, who control Ray-Ban maker EssilorLuxottica SA, and construction tycoon Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone have both built big stakes in Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA, the once-troubled bank set to play a pivotal role in the M&A wave. Together, the families now wield a combined €15 billion of financial services investments in Italy — and plan to make their voices heard as consolidation accelerates.
The industry is in the throes of one of the most volatile periods in recent history. Italy’s government sees Monte Paschi as a way to create a third big national bank, while other lenders are seeking deals to defend their own businesses. In this fast-moving environment, the billionaire clans are positioning themselves to exert influence in any deal involving Monte Paschi, while also keeping stakes in some of the other banks likely involved in M&A.
This year, Italy’s banking sector “will likely change materially, paving the way for stronger players,” S&P Global Ratings said in a report on Wednesday. “The obstructive shareholder structure of several banks could influence the deals’ outcome, but consolidation looks to be inevitable.”
Even by the standards of one of Europe’s most dynamic banking markets, recent activity has been frenetic. In early November, Banco BPM SpA offered to buy asset manager Anima Holding SpA, just days before the government tapped BPM and Anima, along with the two billionaire families, to buy a stake in Paschi. The move was seen as a cornerstone of a government plan to combine Paschi with BPM to create a competitor to UniCredit SpA and Intesa Sanpaolo SpA, the two biggest banks. An expected tie-up between the asset management operations of Italy’s largest insurer Generali and France’s Natixis, which people familiar with the matter have said is likely to be announced before the end of the month, is adding to the buzz. The two billionaire families hold large stakes in Generali and Caltagirone has repeatedly sought to influence the firm’s strategy.
The positioning around Paschi drew an almost immediate response from veteran investment banker and dealmaker Andrea Orcel at UniCredit. Just days after the Paschi sale, the CEO surprised investors with an unsolicited €10 billion bid for Banco BPM. It was seen as an especially surprising move given the lender’s interest in Commerzbank.
If that move perplexed the Italian government, it also served as a lightening rod for others to assess their positions. Among them, French bank Credit Agricole SA bought derivatives to raise its stake in Banco BPM to 15%.
The Del Vecchios and Caltagirone further built up their negotiating power with higher stakes in Paschi. Caltagirone last month bought more shares, and put his son Alessandro on the bank’s board. The Del Vecchios boosted their stake to 9.8% and are now the bank’s second-biggest investor after the government.
The big question surrounds the two families plans and future strategy. They see themselves primarily as financial investors and are looking for firms with the potential for high returns and growth through deals, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The rationale for boosting their Paschi stakes is to ensure influence in any deals involving the lender, the people said.Caltagirone sees himself as a long term investor with a strategic view on the firms he invests in. He believes Paschi could form the base for a third strong national banking group after its revamp, the people said.
Those ambitions would fit with the government’s goals.
And there’s a dose of patriotism, mixed with political reality, to their dealings. In line with the government, they’re keen to help support the Italian economy, people familiar with the matter said. Caltagirone, who owns Il Messaggero newspaper, in particular is said to be close to the Meloni administration.Representatives for the two families declined to comment.
Rome — which is closely following developments and seeking to protect its financial sector– still owns a minority stake in Paschi, which could be eventually sold. Anima — which has Paschi and state-owned Poste Italiane SpA as key clients — is seen as crucial in this scenario, and a deal involving the asset manager and Paschi is an option that may be considered, the people said.While the two families’ views on Italy’s financial sector are often aligned, decision-making and investments are separate and they have independent opinions, the people said.
UniCredit’s Orcel, by contrast, rebuffed attempts by the former government to forge a deal earlier between his bank and Paschi. Meanwhile, Intesa’s CEO has said that the size of the bank’s market share means he can’t do more deals. He argues that M&A in the industry may create instability that Intesa can benefit from.
As they weigh their next steps, Caltagirone, 81, and the Del Vecchios, led until 2022 by late patriarch Leonardo, can lean back on a history in banking stretching back more than two decades.
Caltagirone’s holding company is one of the main Italian private industrial groups and he has a net worth of about €2.1 billion. He operates in cement production, infrastructure, publishing, real estate and finance.
Del Vecchio used his holding company to diversify his fortune into finance, which typically delivers higher returns than eyewear. The value of the family’s Delfin holdings now total about €40 billion, following a 50% increase in the last two years, the company said in June. But with Del Vecchio’s inheritance split between heirs still divided over succession, decision-making risks being complicated.
The billionaire left 2.15 million EssilorLuxottica shares to Francesco Milleri, who has assumed much of the powers over the family fortune. Milleri has been EssilorLuxottica’s chief executive officer since 2020 and is now Delfin chairman. His challenge is carrying forward the billionaire’s vision, especially given complex relations with other family members.
And while the two families’ banking deals have often been a financial success, they’ve had mixed results when attempting to push through bigger strategic changes.
A Caltagirone campaign to oust Generali CEO Philippe Donnet failed three years ago. And a combined effort to unseat Mediobanca CEO Alberto Nagel was also unsuccessful.
Caltagirone said the Generali campaign failed because his plan was rejected by international shareholders who “did not fully perceive how necessary change is.” The billionaire said he would have continued pushing for that change “as long as I find it reasonable.”
With Generali likely to announce a pivotal deal with Natixis to combine their asset managers in coming days, and the Generali board set to be renewed in May, the tycoons may still have more to say. Last year, the government approved a controversial law that gives shareholders more power to determine the board members of listed companies, a move seen as a way for investors to get a firmer grip on companies like Mediobanca and Generali.
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