Banco BPM's Buyout Offer for Anima Holding

By Andrea Mandala and Valentina Za
MILAN (Reuters) – Italy's third-largest Banco BPM announced a buyout offer to acquire full control of asset manager Anima Holding in a deal valued at up to €1.6 billion ($1.7 billion).

Banco BPM currently holds a 22% stake in Anima, and this buyout aims to take Anima private, contingent on acquiring at least 67% of the fund manager.

The acquisition is expected to enhance Banco BPM's fee income and support profits amid declining interest rates. The move reflects ongoing consolidation in the savings management sector and offers regulatory advantages for asset managers acquired through a bank's insurance division.

Earlier this year, BNP Paribas made a similar move by buying the asset manager of French insurer AXA through its BNP Paribas Cardif insurance division.

Jefferies analyst Marco Nicolai commented, "The deal makes sense in our view in the context of increasing revenue diversification with a contained core capital hit."

Banco BPM stated that post-transaction, fees and commissions will represent over 45% of core revenues, increasing from the current 37%. Banco BPM is offering Anima shareholders €6.2 per share, an 8% premium on Wednesday’s closing price.

Anima shares closed at €5.75 on Wednesday, reflecting a year-to-date gain of 46%. Anima is partly owned by the Italian private equity fund FSI, which has a 9.8% stake and already collaborates with Banco BPM in payments. FSI's investment in Anima in February 2023 was seen as a precursor to future mergers and acquisitions. The Italian post office, Poste Italiane, also holds 12%.

Banco BPM CEO Giuseppe Castagna welcomed other institutional investors to retain their stakes in Anima. The acquisition will be executed through Banco BPM's BPM Vita life insurance unit, focusing on coordinating life insurance and asset management products for clients.

This integration will consolidate Banco BPM’s total assets from life insurance and asset management to approximately €220 billion.

According to BPM Vita, the deal's completion is anticipated in the first half of 2025, adhering to the Danish Compromise regulatory treatment.

Citigroup and Lazard are serving as financial advisers to Banco BPM and BPM Vita. The deal is projected to minimally impact Banco BPM's core capital ratio (around 30 basis points) while potentially increasing earnings per share by about 10%, raising the return on tangible equity to over 17% by 2026 from the current 13.5%.

($1 = 0.9317 euros)