Generali: Del Vecchio bites Mediobanca and caresses Caltagirone
What Leonardo Del Vecchio, chairman of EssilorLuxottica and private shareholder of Generali, said, in view of the next assembly of the insurance group in which the Caltagirone list is opposed to that of the board of directors welcomed by Mediobanca (first shareholder of the Leone)
Sberle in Mediobanca, caresses in Caltagirone. This is the gist of the interview that the number one of Essilor-Luxottica, Leonardo Del Vecchio, released to the Bloomberg agency in view of the Assicurazioni Generali meeting ( scheduled for April 29 ) for the renewal of the board of directors of the giant. insurance now led by the CEO, Philippe Donnet, who is re-presented from the board list orchestrated by the first shareholder of the Trieste group, namely Mediobanca.
Here is what Del Vecchio said in summary.
THE INTERVIEW OF DEL VECCHIO IN BLOOMBERG
Leonardo Del Vecchio, chairman of EssilorLuxottica and major private shareholder of Generali, said he appreciated the alternative plan with which Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone aims to conquer the management of the insurance group with its own candidates for the positions of chairman and chief executive officer, alternatives to those proposed by the current board of directors and supported by Mediobanca.
OF THE OLD PRO CALTAGIRONE
In the interview, Del Vecchio also says he appreciated the strategic lines of the proposals from Caltagirone and his team. They express "a long-term entrepreneurial vision that not only looks at dividends, but also at the need to grow the company".
THE CALTAGIRONE LIST
Caltagirone's plan to convince the shareholders at the assembly at the end of April was presented last Friday by the candidates for president Claudio Costamagna and CEO Luciano Cirinà in Milan and now an international road show is underway.
PRAISE OF DEL VECCHIO IN CALTAGIRONE
The strategy expressed by Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone for Generali offers "a long-term entrepreneurial vision, which not only seeks dividends but also looks at the growth needs of the company". Leonardo Del Vecchio said this in an interview with Bloomberg . The owner of Luxottica, the third shareholder of Leone, defined the Caltagirone list as “highly competent and well balanced”.
THE GOVERNANCE WANTED BY CALTAGIRONE AND DEL VECCHIO
The governance proposed by the plan, alternative to that of the current head of the Lion of Trieste company, Philippe Donnet, proposed by the Board of Directors for reconfirmation, aims to reduce the powers of the CEO, to give a greater operational role to the president, also introducing a general manager and an executive committee. “He finally sees himself as a president with operational capabilities who has what it takes to create value for the company,” according to Del Vecchio, who hopes to see large-scale operations in the future such as to redesign the group's profile.
THE QUOTE OF DEL VECCHIO
The third largest shareholder of Generali, according to sources close to the dossier cited by Bloomberg, has an 8% stake in Generali and is considering increasing further.
WELL CIRINA '
Del Vecchio also shows appreciation for Cirinà's choice as a possible successor to Donnet: “I also like the fact that an internal manager with a long and successful career is proposed as managing director”.
THE EDGE OF DEL VECCHIO AT MEDIOBANCA
Leonardo Del Vecchio criticizes Mediobanca, of which he is the first shareholder with approximately 19% of the capital, for the stock lending that will allow Piazzetta Cuccia to vote with more than 17% of the capital in the Lion's assembly. "I'm old school who think entrepreneurs should invest their resources," Luxottica founder said in an interview with Bloomberg. “I recently found out that company shares can only be leased to vote at a shareholders' meeting and then returned to their owners. If this practice becomes widespread and legitimate I think there could be serious consequences for our economy, ”Del Vecchio said.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/economia/generali-del-vecchio-mediobanca-caltagirone/ on Wed, 30 Mar 2022 13:25:04 +0000.