“Mps is the best option and the only one on the table”. The CEO of Unicredit, Andrea Orcel, said this in a call with analysts the day after the announcement of the “engagement” between Unicredit and Mps.
Unicredit is in talks to buy “a part” of the assets of Mps, he then pointed out in a call with analysts, indicating that “the perimeter is very important to simplify the operation” and that “timing and conditions are the right ones”. The CEO added that the operation is “simplified by the fact” that in the purchase perimeter there will be “only the parts that fit and complement us”. Furthermore, Orcel reiterates that Unicredit “is not focused on m & a per se, I do not think – he found – that conditions like these” of Mps “are available elsewhere”.
The announcement of a negotiation between Unicredit and the Ministry of Economy for a definitive safety of Monte dei Paschi, of which the state is currently a shareholder with approximately 64%, immediately triggered the hypotheses on the number of redundancies linked to the operation. If union voices speak of 5-6 thousand exits, other sources point out that it is not possible to make an estimate of any staff cuts before understanding which parts of Mps will actually be acquired by Unicredit and if the Mef will set up other negotiations for the remaining assets . “Avoiding unnecessary redundancies is another key variable in the selection of the perimeter” to be acquired, added the CEO of the Milanese bank.
The CGIL: involving workers and trade unions
“It seems to me that we are in the presence of a formal fact: a negotiation is opened between Unicredit and the Minister of the Economy, and therefore it is necessary for the union and the workers to enter into this discussion and discuss”. This was said by the secretary of the CGIL, Maurizio Landini, participating in the general assembly of CGIL Toscana. «As is well known – recalled the general secretary of the CGIL – we are opposed to the idea of the stew because this means weakening the banking system of our country. Since we are talking about public money that has been put on the field, public money, layoffs and closures cannot be combined. As far as we are concerned, our position is very precise and in the next few hours we will act so that this table is called quickly, and if this does not happen together with the category we should decide which initiatives to put in place ».
The accounts: for semester Unicredit in profit of 1.9 billion
Following the announcement of the start of the negotiations for the potential acquisition of some Monte dei Paschi activities, Unicredit communicates to the market the data of its six months and are in strong growth. Underlying net profit of € 1.1 billion in Q2 is up 24.7% quarter-over-quarter, and € 2 billion in H1, equivalent to an underlying return on tagible equity (RoTE) of 7.7% in the first half of 2021. The result was mainly driven by the decrease in systemic charges and the lower negative contribution of Yapi Kredi to net investment profits. Fees at 1.7 billion in the second quarter were up 21.4% year-over-year thanks to strong gross sales of insurance and asset management products. Revenues from trading activities amounted to € 425 million, up 19.1 percent year on year. 125 million euros dividends, up 102% year on year with the positive contribution of both equity and financial investments (+48 million euros year on year) and Yapi Kredi (+15 million euros year on year). Operating costs amounted to € 2.5 billion in the second quarter, up 2% compared to the previous quarter, with a cost / income ratio of 56%. In the first half of the year, personnel costs decreased by 1.9% year on year thanks to the reduction in FTE (full time equivalent), especially in Commercial Banking Italy, Commercial Banking Germany and Central Eastern Europe.