Italian top banker Alessandro Profumo, who is leaving its chairman seat in Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena next August 6th and had served as ceo of Unicredit bank, surprised the Italian market yesterday announcing that he is buying control of Equita sim spa together with the top management of the company (download here the press release).
Equita sim is one of the leading brokers active in the equity and capital markets in Italy offering also investment banking services. Once known as Euromobiliare sim, it was bought out in 2007 by US private equity fund JC Flowers (who took a 50% stake in the shareholders’ capital) and by Italian investment company Mid Industry Capital (10%), who supported the management a management-buyout acquiring the company from Credito Emiliano bank.
More in detail, Mr. Profumo will create a newco together with Equita’s ceo Francesco Perilli and Equita’ s top managers Fabio Deotto, Matteo Ghilotti, Stefano Lustig and Andrea Vismara. The newco will be also partecipated by Manco spa, the investment veichle owned by the managers which at the moment controls a 40% stake in Equita’s capital.  So at the end the management will raise its stake in the company. The remaining 10% is represented by shares owned by Equita itself, which have been bought back one year ago from Mid Industry for a 5.3 million euros price.
Times had been changing since 2007 and now Equita is valued under the price JC Flower paid back in 2007, MF-Milano FInanza writes today, saying that the company closed 2014 with revenues slightly under 50 million euros while in 2006 revenues were almost 70 millions. However Equita has always been closing financial years with positive net results and so JC FLower has been receiving rich dividends since 2007 for a total estimated value of 55 million euros, the newspaper adds.
Equita sim also advised JC FLowers at the end of 2013 in the acquisition of a 79% stake in Italian insurance company Eurovita Assicurazioni from Banco Popolare, Aviva e Finoa for a 47 million euros price tag (si veda altro articolo di BeBeez) and last March the US fund gained 12 million euros in dividends as the company closed FY 2014 with a 34 million euros net result (+125% from 15 millions in 2013) .
After the deal, Mr. Profumo will become chairman of Equita sim while Thierry Porté, JC Flowers’ managing director and actualEquita’s chairman will become vice chairman. Mr. Perilli will remain ceo.
The deal os subject to Bank of Italy’s go ahead. Equita acted as sole financial advisor in the deal, while as for legal issues JC Flowers has been supported by Allen & Overy law firm, Mr. Profumo by Gianni, Origoni, Grippo, Cappelli & Partners and Equita sim by Rucellai&Raffaelli. Â Ludovici&Partners was sole advisor on fiscal issues.
