CORRECT: Intesa Sanpaolo CEO: Conversion Of Saving Shares Not On Agenda

Intesa Sanpaolo SpA's (ISP.MI) Chief Executive Corrado Passera Thursday ruled out a conversion of the bank's saving shares into ordinary shares for the time being.

The saving shares cost more than ordinary shares and confer a higher dividend but have no voting rights. Conversion into ordinary shares would help boost the bank's capital ratios.

Speaking on the sidelines of an event in Milan, Passera said the cost of such an operation wasn't justifiable at current share price levels, according to a report by Italian newswire MF-Dow Jones.

Analysts expect Italian banks to convert their saving shares, where and if possible, to shore up their capital ahead of the implementation of new Basel III accounting rules. Intesa Sanpaolo carried out a EUR5 billion capital hike in June and has a core Tier 1 ratio of over 10%, one of the highest among Italian lenders.

Asked about a possible sale of assets of Italian publisher RCS MediaGroup SpA (RCS.MI), Passera said that according to the RCS Mediagroup plan the company would sell non-profitable assets.

According to press reports, financial weekly Il Mondo and gossip magazine Novella 2000 are among possible titles that could be sold in future weeks. Intesa Sanpaolo controls a 5% stake in RCS MediaGroup.

-By Alberto Chimenti and Sabrina Cohen, Dow Jones Newswires, [phone]; [e-mail]