Italy Says Close to Completing Monte dei Paschi Rescue

By Giovanni Legorano

ROME--A rescue deal which will see the Italian Treasury taking over troubled lender Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA is nearly finalized, Bank of Italy officials said Monday.

"We got to the end. The formal consensus of the [European Commission's] Directorate General for Competition is missing, but there are no doubts [about the MPS rescue plan]," said Carmelo Barbagallo, in charge of banking supervision at the Bank of Italy.

Mr. Barbagallo said Monte dei Paschi would close a bad loans sale, which is key part of its rescue package, with the Atlante fund. Atlante will be able to use funds previously committed to the purchase of bad loans from Banca Popolare di Vicenza SpA and Veneto Banca SpA to buy Monte dei Paschi's bad loans.

The government assumed responsibility for liquidating the portfolio of bad loans of the two Veneto-based banks, while their best assets will be transferred to Intesa Sanpaolo SpA, in a deal announced on Sunday.

-Write to Giovanni Legorano at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 26, 2017 09:03 ET (13:03 GMT)

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