The Haizum Italian Insider Report is a monthly news service that monitors the most relevant issues in Italy. This document focuses on political, Economical, and Strategic matters, taking into account the role of Italy within the European Union, the MENA region, and Transatlantic Relations. The report will deliver clever insights by leveraging Haizum’s deep connections in the national institutional ecosystem.
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Italian President Sergio Mattarella, in his Republic Day speech, emphasizes the importance of unity and solidarity. He praised the efforts made during the pandemic and highlighted the need for economic recovery and social cohesion. Among others, Mattarella also mentioned the challenges of climate change, urging international cooperation.
From the Banca D’Italia Annual Report, it can be pointed out that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine marked a turning point in international relations and has greatly affected global growth, inflation, and trade. Tensions between countries have reached levels not seen since the Cold War. There have been exceptional rises in energy prices, contributing to a sharp and widespread increase in inflation, matched by a rapid tightening of monetary policies in almost all the major advanced economies, and global growth has slowed at a time of great economic and political uncertainty. Government authorities, especially in advanced countries, have intervened in support of households and firms in order to mitigate the impact of the energy crisis. Higher energy prices have led to a massive transfer of wealth from oil- and gas-importing countries to oil-and gas-exporting countries and to a rapid change in the geography of trade in these commodities linked to energy security. Tensions have also affected exports of agricultural products and fertilizers, jeopardizing the food security of the poorest and most vulnerable economies. In many low-income countries, the worsening trade balance, combined with lower net capital inflows, has exacerbated the problems in public finance management, requiring debt restructuring negotiations to begin in several cases. Against the backdrop of a serious deterioration in international relations, the resolution of differences and dialogue have continued in the arenas of international cooperation. However, these diplomatic initiatives have encountered obstacles, in part because the strategic conflict between the world’s two leading economies, the United States and China, has become more intense.
In his final considerations, the Governor of the Bank of Italy Ignazio Visco stressed the importance of sustained economic recovery and the need to address structural issues in Italy’s economy. He highlighted the impact of the pandemic, noting that there are still vulnerabilities and uncertainties that need to be carefully managed. Visco called for a coordinated effort between monetary and fiscal policy, and structural reforms to foster sustainable economic growth and reduce inequality. Italy’s approval of the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) is crucial in this process.
Many updates in company matters. The handover of the Isab refinery from Lukoil to Goi Energy took place, securing the plant’s operation and ensuring the crude oil supply. Eni announced its new board of directors, led by Claudio Zafarana and including Claudio Descalzi as CEO. Enel underwent a board renewal, with Paolo Scaroni elected as chairman and Flavio Cattaneo as CEO.
The company also approved its 2022 budget and a buyback plan. Gruppo FS appointed Gianpiero Strisciuglio as CEO of Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (RFI), while Dario Lo Bosco became chairman. Intesa Sanpaolo reached an agreement with unions regarding employee bonuses, fostering better relations between the bank and the unions. ITA proceeds with Lufthansa for the German group to enter its capital, pending regulatory approval. Leonardo appointed Roberto Cingolani as CEO and General Director, and new board members were elected. Pirelli faced a freeze on its new Chinese pact due to golden power considerations, while Rai saw changes in its leadership, with Roberto Sergio appointed as CEO and Giampaolo Rossi as General Director. Vivendi proposed Luciano Carta as a board member for TIM, signaling a shift in the company’s board composition. Overall, these developments reflect a mix of changes in leadership positions, business transactions, and challenges faced by Italian institutions and companies. The focus remains on economic recovery, international cooperation, and ensuring the stability and growth of various sectors in Italy.
President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella stressed the current and deeply felt value of the Republican Constitution, which rejects war as a means of conflict resolution. He condemned the Russian Federation‘s aggression against Ukraine as the most brutal denial of this principle. During the Rai National Symphony Orchestra’s concert on the occasion of the 77th Republic Day, diplomatic representatives of Russia and Belarus were not invited for the second consecutive year, while top Italian authorities were present. President Mattarella pointed out that the conflict that has been ongoing for more than 15 months in Central Europe is causing death, devastation, and serious global consequences, threatening the international order built after World War II.
The President reiterated that peace for Kyiv must be just and not at the expense of those attacked, based on principles of solidarity and justice. He called on Italy, the European Union, and the Atlantic Alliance to support Ukraine and urged all countries to engage and be willing to find common solutions. He stressed the importance of bold choices and multilateral engagement not only in Ukraine but also in the growing tensions in the Balkans, in order to consolidate and expand the EU project to meet current challenges. The President highlighted the importance of multilateralism in responding to interconnected global problems, such as climate change, health protection, migration management, and human rights protection.
During his speech, the Head of State expressed deep emotion toward the flood-affected areas, particularly Emilia-Romagna and neighboring areas, which he visited recently. He thanked the many countries that have shown concrete solidarity, stressing the universal value of solidarity found in the Italian Constitution.
Between February and April appointments have been made to various entities. Federica Celestini Campanari became the commissioner of the Italian Youth Agency. She is very close to Premier Giorgia Meloni. Gabriella Alemanno (sister of the former mayor of Rome, Gianni) and Federico Cornelli have been appointed as CONSOB directors. Elda Turco Bulgherini and Giuseppe Basini as advisers of the Italian Space Agency and Bruno Franchi as extraordinary commissioner of the National Agency for Flight Safety.
As director general of the Pompeii Grand Project, Carabinieri Brigadier General Giovanni Di Blasio remains at the helm. Giovanni Capasso will be the deputy project director general. The names for national parks are, for the Vesuvius National Park Authority, Raffaele De Luca, commissioner for two months, and, for the Cilento, Vallo di Diano and Alburni National Park Authority, Giuseppe Coccorullo as president for five years. Anna Elisabetta Castelli will serve as commissioner of the Geominerary Park of Sardinia. The National Institute for Documentation, Innovation, and Educational Research (Indire) also has a new board member: Francesco Manfredi. Pietro Covino will be chairman of the Armed Forces Pension Fund, while Beniamino Quintieri will be of the Sports Credit Institute.
The examination of Capitals DDL begins in the House. The majority aims for its conversion into law by the end of the year. The bill is a full-fledged reform of Piazza Affari and the rules of the capital market, aiming to incentivize the listing of companies, spread the shareholder base of the Italian stock exchange, and broaden the range of financial intermediaries.
Fewer powers to the Court of Auditors
The Government’s amendment excluding the Court’s “concurrent control” over the NRRP and extending the treasury shield until June 2024 was approved by the Constitutional Affairs and Labor committees. Starting from Monday, the Public Administration Decree, which contains the approved amendment, will be before the House.
Andrea De Gennaro, at the age of 63, is the new commander of the Guardia di Finanza. First weeks of internal negotiations, then more time to formalize the appointment, but in the end the Meloni Government choose the new commander of the Guardia di Finanza. His name was the one supported by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Undersecretary Alfredo Mantovano. De Gennaro will replace Giuseppe Zafarana, whom the Government appointed president of Eni.
Andrea De Gennaro is the younger brother of Gianni, former police chief, director of the Department of Security Intelligence since 2008, undersecretary during the Monti Government, and president of state-owned Leonardo until 2020. Andrea De Gennaro, on the other hand, has spent the majority of his career in the Guardia di Finanza, which he joined in 1978.
The appointment of Vittorio Pisani as head of the State Police will cause a minor reshuffling of positions within the secret services. Waiting for Undersecretary Alfredo Mantovano to finalize the reorganization of the “intelligence” apparatus, his role as deputy director of the AISI must be filled. Apparently, Premier Giorgia Meloni wants to reward ROS commanding general Pasquale Angelosanto for the capture of Matteo Messina Denaro. But at the AISI there are already director Mario Parente and deputy Carlo De Donno from the Carabinieri. So the idea could be to move the DIS deputy Bruno Valensise to AISI and replace him with General Angelosanto.
On the sidelines of the G7 in Japan, Giorgia Meloni met with Olaf Scholz. The talks were preparatory to the German Chancellor’s planned visit to Rome on June 8. The two addressed the Ita-Lufthansa dossier, with the German company ready for a capital increase of 300 mln euros for 40% of the Italian company.
The diplomacies of Italy and Germany have been working on an Action Plan. It was scheduled to be signed last fall, then the Government crisis froze everything. The German-Italian initiative should represent an agreement with a lighter structure than the Quirinal Treaty, between the Italian Republic and the French Republic for Enhanced Bilateral Cooperation.
In 2022 and in early 2023, the reforms envisaged in Italy’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan covered many institutional and regulatory aspects of the business environment. In order to improve the efficiency of the civil justice system, Italy’s civil procedure was reformed and staff was significantly increased to support the work of the courts. The backlog of proceedings have decreased, albeit slowly when compared with the NRRP targets.
A new Public Contract Code was issued, the main provisions of which concern digitalization and the qualification of contracting authorities, improving the transparency and quality of the administrative procedure. The Code extends the use of discretionary procurement arrangements, thus simplifying the management of tenders, at the cost of curtailing the benefits of competition. The NRRP requires countries to take measures to combat the shadow economy, which accounts for a significant share of GDP but also distorts markets. A national plan to counter the shadow economy was adopted for 2023-25.
The increase in interest rates since last July has significantly influenced the operations of credit institutions. Moreover, banks‘ activity has been affected by a macroeconomic environment marked by weak growth and high uncertainty, partly owing to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Lending to firms slowed in 2022, eventually contracting, while the growth in loans to households remained stable, though it began to weaken. Banks tightened supply conditions on account of higher perceived risks. The amount of public sector securities in banks’ portfolios decreased.
The flow of new non-performing loans as a ratio to performing loans declined slightly. The volume of NPL sales remained high, helping to bring their share of total loans to a value in line with the euro-area average.
The banking system’s overall funding contracted, mainly as a result of the reduction in liabilities vis-à-vis the Eurosystem. Banks’ profitability improved, reaching the highest levels since the onset of the global financial crisis. The main contributory factors included the growth in interest rate margins and the reduction in loan loss provisions. Operating costs held stable, while staff costs decreased slightly. Banks continued to streamline distribution channels.
In early 2023, the tensions in financial markets resulting from the crises of some intermediaries in the United States and Switzerland did not have a significant impact on Italian banks. The strengthening in the balance sheets they have achieved in recent years has increased their resilience.
Banks continued to align their climate risk assessment and management methods to supervisory expectations. These approaches will benefit from the wider availability of corporate sustainability data based on common European standards. The growing take-up of digital technologies requires banks to step up their investments in IT infrastructure to adapt to the changes underway in the financial services market and address cyber-risks.
Changes for Mediocredito Centrale, the public credit institution to which Banca Popolare di Bari belongs. The new chairman will be Ferruccio Ferranti. The assembly also appointed the new board and Francesco Minotti as CEO, the current top manager of Banco Bpm, succeeding Bernardo Mattarella. With Minotti’s appointment procedures will start to form the new board of Popolare di Bari, Mediocredito’s main subsidiary, along with Cassa di Risparmio di Orvieto.
Francesco Conci is the new CEO of Fiera Milano. Besides Conci, the new board includes Carlo Bonomi, chairman; Ferruccio Resta; Michaela Castelli; Agostino Santoni; Monica Poggio; Regina De Albertis; Paola Annamaria Petrone; and Elena Vasco.
“For 2023 the forecasts available today converge on an increase in output around 1%.” This was said in his final considerations by Banca Italia Governor Ignazio Visco, according to whom “in dealing with the consequences of the war in Ukraine, as well as in the exit from the pandemic, the Italian economy has shown a comforting capacity to react.” The governor notes in our economy “encouraging signs that need to be strengthened, overcoming those delays that still prevent our economy from deploying its full potential.”
“Finally, one cannot fail to emphasize the need to complete the banking union, through a review of the current crisis management discipline as well as the establishment of a single deposit guarantee scheme.” Visco added, that “the recent phenomena of instability observed outside the European Union clearly show the importance of achieving these objectives. As soon as its reform is fully operational, the ESM (European Stability Mechanism) can play an important role by providing a financial safety net.
Italian growth “exceeded our expectations in the first quarter of 2023” thanks to the easing of the gas crisis, a strong recovery in tourism, and strengthening global demand. Fitch, in light of these dynamics, has raised its growth estimates for Italy in 2023 to +1.2%. In 2024, it expects a growth of 0.8%, slower than the 1.3% forecast in March. Fitch expects Italy’s public debt to decline to 142.3% of GDP in 2024 from 144.4% in 2022.
The big puzzle of EU appointments will be put together after next year’s European elections. But the first piece will have to be put in place soon because the new president of the European Investment Bank (EIB) must be chosen. Italy has a good chance of winning and the Treasury has begun sounding out allies on the candidate it considers most expendable: former Minister Daniele Franco.
The race to replace German Werner Hoyer, whose term expires in December, has begun: at the last Ecofin, the Swedish EU presidency invited governments to submit nominations by June 16. On that day, the EIB Board of Governors will meet to approve the list of candidates, after which the names will be vetted by the Appointments Committee.
Visco’s successor leading candidate is Fabio Panetta, whom Premier Giorgia Meloni wanted by her side as Minister of Economy. The rejection had been proffered precisely in view of the possible role at the central bank.
In 2020 he moved to Frankfurt as the Italian representative on the ECB’s Executive Board. The only unknown weighing on his appointment to Via Nazionale refers to that chair in Frankfurt, which by practice should belong to an Italian. A possible replacement – the most credited name is that of Piero Cipollone, current deputy general manager of the Bank of Italy – will have to go through political negotiations with the European partners. The new name will have to be approved by Ecofin and the EU Council, and conflicting forces could come into play. It is already understood that before proceeding to name another Italian, it would be crucial for Italy to approve the ESM.
The handover of Isab in Priolo from the Russians of Lukoil to the Cypriots of Goi Energy is concluded. Also on the new board of the refining company chaired by Angelo Taraborrelli (former Eni with Scaroni), there is Massimo Nicolazzi, former top manager of Eni, Lukoil, and Centrex (Gazprom).
The deal was valued at around 1.5 bln euros. Being owned by the Russian company Lukoil, ISAB was unable to obtain from banks the credit it needed to purchase crude from non-Russian sources. Unable to access the raw material, partly because of the European ban, ISAB was essentially facing closure. The plant is worth one-fifth of Italy’s refining capacity and also meets 20% of Sicily‘s electricity demand. The Government applied golden power on the ISAB transaction, placing conditions.
Winds of peace over Assicurazioni Generali exactly one year after the shareholders’ meeting that sanctioned the split between the side of Mediobanca, the leading shareholder with 13.1%, and the international funds that won the reappointment of CEO Philippe Donnet, and the opposing side of the strong Italian shareholders, Del Vecchio‘s Delfin, Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone, and the Benettons.
During the shareholders’ meeting called to approve the 2022 financial statements and dividend, the puzzle represented by the appointment of the board of statutory auditors got stuck, with the chairman appointed from the list presented by the Caltagirone group and the other two candidates expressed by Assogestioni, with gender quotas respected.
The managers’ list obtained 88.7% of the preferences and appointed Paolo Ratti and Sara Landini; Caltagirone’s list 5.56%, and being the minority list, by statute it expressed the chairman of the board of auditors, who will be Carlo Schiavone. Whether the breeze of peace will become real peace will be understood shortly since in October the board of Mediobanca, in which Delfin is the leading shareholder with about 20% and Caltagirone has about 6%, will expire.
Lorenzo Berneri is leaving Unicredit and as of June 1 will be at Simest, the Cdp Group company administered by Regina Corradini d’Arienz. In Simest he will go to replace Lorella Campi, a veteran of the group who had moved from the parent company to set up the financial services company’s communications office, and who in June will be at Cdp Real Estate again as head of external relations and media relations.
Eni‘s new board of directors, chaired by General Claudio Zafarana, commander of the Guardia di Finanza, has been appointed. The board consists of nine members, who will serve for three fiscal years. Besides Chairman Zafarana, it includes Claudio Descalzi (CEO since 2014) and directors Elisa Baroncini, Massimo Belcredi, Roberto Ciciani, Carolyn Adele Dittmeier, Federica Seganti, Cristina Sgubin, and Raphael Louis Vermeir.
Eni’s annual financial statements as of December 31, 2022, were closed with a profit of 5.403 bln euros. The dividend for 2023 was set at €0.94 per share. The shareholders’ meeting then authorized the board to purchase treasury shares, until the end of April 2024: 337,000,000 ordinary shares, with a total value of 3.5 bln euros. A maximum of 275,000,000 shares will be used to remunerate shareholders, while 62,000,000 shares will go to build up the so-called “securities stock.”
The Mef list elected 6 candidates, Assogestioni the remaining 3; nothing for Covalis. The new board of directors, serving for 3 years, includes Paolo Scaroni – chairman, voted with 97.24% -, Flavio Cattaneo, Alessandro Zehenter, Johanna Arbib, Fiammetta Salmoni, and Olga Cuccurullo who were on the Mef list. Also with them were Dario Frigerio, Alessandra Stabilini, and Mario Corsi who were on the Sgr and institutional investors list.
During the meeting that voted for the new board of directors, the green light also came for the 2022 budget, which closed with a net profit of 5.4 bln euros and a dividend of 40 cents. The meeting, with 98.49% in favor, approved the buyback plan of up to 2 bln euros. In his report, the outgoing CEO, Francesco Satrace, noted that Enel’s stock has risen 21% since the presentation of the 2023-2025 plan last November and capitalization has reached 67 bln euros.
From the Fs nominations committee came the double indication for Rfi, Rete Ferroviaria Italiana: Gianpiero Strisciuglio will be the new CEO and Dario Lo Bosco chairman. As for Trenitalia, Luigi Corradi will remain CEO and Stefano Cuzzilla will become chairman.
In 2023, Intesa Sanpaolo will share a 155 mln euro bonus, which adds up to 130 mln from the bonus pool, a double-digit increase, and 25 mln euro from a bonus system, the SET (System of Excellence Protection), intended for insurance products. After reaching an agreement on the flexible work package, the bank reached a new understanding with the unions (Fabi, First, Fisac, Uilca, and Unisin), according to which the minimum amount of the 2023 variable performance bonus will be 1,020 euros, an increase of more than 25% over the previous year. Other “additional bonuses” may be added to these amounts. The agreement also provides for a strengthening of the duties of the Business Policies and Corporate Climate Commission to improve the welfare of workers.
A union agreement that also sealed a return to dialogue between the company and trade unions. In December, precisely on these two issues, there had been a rupture, recomposed with this signature. It is to be seen whether Intesa Sanpaolo’s agreement with the unions will be a viaticum to return to ABI, the Italian banking association chaired by Antonio Patuelli.
Formalized at the Treasury the agreement for Lufthansa to enter the capital. For the moment it will stop at 40% but with the possibility of going up to 90%. It starts with an investment of 320 mln by the German group.
The disbursement awaits the closing of the transaction, which will take place after the green light from the European Antitrust Authority. After breakeven, Lufthansa will be able to acquire another ITA’s 50% for about 500 mln, leaving the Treasury with the remaining 10%. Before the aforementioned closing, however, there will be one last shot by the Italian state, with an injection of 250 mln to replenish Ita’s cash. After the signing, a full meeting will be convened to appoint the new board.
Roberto Cingolani, the physicist who was scientific director of the Italian Institute of Technology in Genoa, has been appointed CEO of Leonardo. Cingolani, who was Minister of Ecological Transition in Mario Draghi‘s Government, is convinced that he has what it takes. That is also why he has resisted attempts to restrict his competencies with the flanking of Lorenzo Mariani, the experienced defense manager who was backed by Guido Crosetto, Minister of Defense.
Cingolani will have the dual position, of CEO and General Director. Mariani will be a co-general director and will leave the leadership of Mbda Italy and the role of “director” for sales of the entire European missile group. Cingolani from 2023 has been appointed ‘senior board director’ of the Nato Investment Fund (a $1 bln fund for innovation in defense and security).
The board of Leonardo, voted diplomat Stefano Pontecorvo as chairman. All eight names submitted by the Economy Ministry were elected: in addition to Pontecorvo and Cingolani, directors Trifone Altieri, Enrica Giorgetti, Francesco Macrì, Cristina Manara, Marcello Sala, and Elena Vasco. The element of surprise lies elsewhere. The list submitted by the U.S. investment firm GreenWood Investors, which owns about a 1.5% stake in Leonardo, got 42% of the capital represented.
While none of the candidates from Assogestioni – the association of Italian asset management companies (Carlo Trabattoni chairs it) worth 1% – entered Leonardo’s board. This is the first time the names of Italian funds have been rejected by Leonardo’s assembly. The four GreenWood candidates on Leonardo’s new board are founder Steven Wood, Giancarlo Ghislanzoni, Silvia Stefini, and Dominique Levy. Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis, leading proxy advisors, had both come out in favor of GreenWood’s slate.
Chinese increasingly strong in Pirelli with the new pact that went into effect May 19, but was frozen pending Government pronouncement on golden power. Under the new agreement, Italian shareholders Mtp (Marco Tronchetti Provera) and Camfin (14% of Pirelli) will lose 1 director, from 4 to 3, while Chinese shareholder Cnrc, a ChemChina/Sinochem group company, will gain one, rising from 8 to 9.
In addition, Marco Tronchetti Provera will only be executive vice chairman and no longer CEO having exercised succession power by naming Giorgio Bruno as his replacement. The agreement will last until December 2025, without a renewal or new agreement, the next CEO will be drawn from the majority list of Cnrc. The pact had been the subject of notification by Cnrc itself to the Prime Minister’s Office in compliance with regulations.
Carlo Fuortes left his role as CEO of Rai by writing a letter of resignation. Not even half an hour after the start of the Rai board meeting following Fuortes’ resignation, comes the appointment of Roberto Sergio as CEO. Giampaolo Rossi will be the general manager, a position Fuortes has held on an interim basis since last fall.
Vivendi has proposed Luciano Carta, former chairman of Leonardo, as a director to replace Arnaud de Puyfontaine. Since de Puyfontaine’s resignation last January, Vivendi had no representatives on Tim‘s board. Now this indication changes the picture, moreover at a very concise moment on the network dossier, with the CEO of Cassa Depositi e Prestiti Dario Scannapieco confirming that Cassa does not intend to withdraw its bid.
The Government views positively a solution in which multiple players are present, starting with Cassa Depositi e Prestiti. The possibility of a joint Cdp-Macquarie bid with KKR has the support of the Mef. The Economy Ministry would also be willing to involve F2i. CDP is not backing out of the game for Tim’s network and, although it is not ruling out a joint bid with Kkr, it is working to provide Tim‘s June 9 board meeting with more details on the proposal submitted jointly with Macquarie. A new, improved proposal is expected from the U.S. fund KKR, and eyes are also on CDP-Macquarie.
Vivendi in recent weeks has challenged governance, remuneration policy, and top management action. The French challenge the latest bids by KKR and CDP-Macquarie. Far from the desired 31 bln. Meanwhile, an extraordinary board meeting has been called on the co-option of Luciano Carta, supported by the leading shareholder Vivendi, to the board. Consob has reportedly begun an in-depth investigation into the positions of Massimo Sarmi, chairman of Fibercop, and Luciano Carta.
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