Last year, UniCredit, a leading bank in Milan, upset Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government by attempting to acquire BPM, another Milanese bank. Meloni had intended to merge BPM with the Tuscan lender Monte dei Paschi di Siena, which had received partial bailout assistance. In retaliation, Rome used ‘golden power’ tools—which are designed to block harmful foreign investments—to apply strict conditions on UniCredit’s bid. UniCredit claims these conditions effectively obstructed the acquisition, leading to a legal confrontation earlier this week.
More broadly, this aggressive move by Rome clashes with the European Commission’s ambitious industrial strategy, which focuses on consolidating the continent’s fragmented banking market as part of a crucial drive to enhance Europe’s competitiveness. Commission officials are preparing to caution the Italian government against misapplying golden power to restrict UniCredit’s acquisition attempt of BPM.
At the Association of Italian Banks (ABI) annual assembly on Thursday, these tensions surfaced, albeit subtly, between financial authorities and industry representatives. On the face of it, the event resembled an occasional gathering of a discordant family maintaining appearances during celebrations, with public remarks avoiding direct reference to the ongoing issues.
Nonetheless, speeches from industry and regulatory figures subtly celebrated free-market capitalism, emphasizing the value of unrestricted free markets. ABI Chairman Antonio Patuelli highlighted the significance of progressing the European banking union, advocating for “common rules for corporate governance, markets, savings, and investment.”
In an apparent critique of the Italian government and its contentious ties with construction magnate Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone, he stated that “competition must always be developed and safeguarded,” urging that banks and “non-traditional financial actors … must be subject to the same rules.”
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