By Valentina Za and Giuseppe Fonte
MILAN (Reuters) - Italy's Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti sought clarification from UniCredit CEO Andrea Orcel over the lender's potential interest in Popolare di Sondrio during a meeting held last week, two people close to the matter said.
Both UniCredit and Italy's Treasury declined to comment.
Orcel earlier this month dismissed as "noise" a newspaper report that UniCredit was the lender behind stake-building in Popolare di Sondrio, saying his bank had not been buying shares in its smaller rival.
However, the report and UniCredit's stance on Popolare di Sondrio in the context of Italy's banking sector consolidation process were discussed during the recent meeting, the sources said.
As head of Italy's second largest bank, Orcel holds a few meetings every quarter in Rome with government representatives, another person familiar with the matter said.
Italian financial daily Il Sole 24 Ore reported on Jan. 18 that a U.S. investment bank had been building an up to 10% stake in Popolare di Sondrio to allow an Italian lender to become a leading shareholder, with UniCredit being the main candidate.
When asked in a television interview if UniCredit was buying shares, Orcel said: "No, we're not."
However, asked if UniCredit was interested in Popolare Sondrio, Orcel said: "We're interested in everything, at the right price."
Reuters has not been able to establish whether or not an investment bank had bought shares in Popolare di Sondrio that it could pass on to UniCredit.
With its roots in Lombardy, Popolare di Sondrio could help UniCredit strengthen its historically weak presence in the wealthy northern region.
Orcel has left the financial industry guessing about his M&A strategy. The veteran dealmaker walked away in 2021 from negotiations with the state to buy bailed-out Monte dei Paschi (MPS).
The following year, he decided last minute against launching a buyout offer it had readied for Banco BPM.
Any M&A deal in Italy's financial sector requires Rome's backing under so-called golden power rules aimed at shielding assets deemed of strategic importance.
Popolare di Sondrio is worth 3 billion euros ($3.3 billion) according to LSEG data, compared with a market value of 46 billion euros for UniCredit, whose shares have risen 215% since Orcel's appointment in 2021, boosted by his generous payback policies.
Any major investor in Popolare di Sondrio would need to contend with Italian insurer Unipol, the biggest shareholder in both Pop Sondrio and rival BPER with stakes of nearly 20% in each and insurance partnerships with both.
Orcel has pledged to decide this year whether to boost UniCredit's payback to shareholders with part of the more than 10 billion euros in excess capital it has piled up, setting very strict conditions to use the money for an acquisition instead.
($1 = 0.9228 euros)